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Publication date: 13 April 2015

Balakrishnan Muniapan

There are ten universal principles of United Nations Global Compact in four areas namely human rights, labour, environmental and anti-corruption, and this chapter will explore the…

Abstract

Purpose

There are ten universal principles of United Nations Global Compact in four areas namely human rights, labour, environmental and anti-corruption, and this chapter will explore the sixth principle of labour standard on elimination of discrimination in employment and occupation, in particular the doctrine of constructive dismissal in Malaysian labour relations. Constructive dismissal is creating a new challenge in labour relation in Malaysia.

Methodology/approach

This chapter specifically analyses some of the constructive dismissal awards and its implication to labour relations in Malaysia. The methodology employed in this chapter is the analysis of case laws using criterion-based sampling from the Industrial and Superior Court awards on constructive dismissal.

Findings

There has been an increasing number of awards on constructive dismissal made by the Malaysian Industrial Court over the last nine years. From the year 2009–2013, the Industrial Court has made 663 awards on constructive dismissal, mostly against employers. With compensation awarded to each employee amounted to as much as 24 months of back-pay salary plus a month’s pay for every year of service, employers can no longer neglect this pressing issue.

Research limitations/implications

The concept of constructive dismissal falls within the purview of section 20 of the Industrial Relations Act 1967 in Malaysia. Constructive dismissal is a ‘deemed dismissal’ if an employer is guilty of a breach of the employment contract which goes to the root of the contract. It arises when a workman terminates his/her contract of employment and considers himself/herself discharged from further obligations because of the employer’s conduct.

Practical implications

With a good understanding of the constructive dismissal awards, it is expected that organizations will manage and treat their human resources as their greatest assets and prevent constructive dismissal claims from taking place. This will eventually help to improve and maintain harmonious labour relations. This chapter is likely to provide insights into the Malaysian labour relations environment for international business operations.

Originality/value

In the context of Malaysian labour relations, studies on constructive dismissal are limited as it is considered as a new area and a specific area of study. This chapter therefore hopes to fill the existing gap in the literature, to highlight some of the recent awards and lessons to prevent constructive dismissal claims from taking place and generally to contribute to the constructive dismissal literature.

Details

Beyond the UN Global Compact: Institutions and Regulations
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78560-558-1

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Article
Publication date: 22 August 2008

Ibrahim Motawa, Ammar Kaka and Chee Hong Wong

Several types of pricing and payment systems are used in the construction industry. However, the current practice is failing to utilise the potential of a link between project…

1408

Abstract

Purpose

Several types of pricing and payment systems are used in the construction industry. However, the current practice is failing to utilise the potential of a link between project performance and clients' satisfaction on one hand and stakeholders' cash flow on the other. Therefore, a paradigm shift in cash flow research is both timely and necessary. The purpose of this paper is to promote and facilitate the use of appropriate payment systems that satisfy all project members.

Design/methodology/approach

The research first investigates how payment systems are being selected, and the drivers for selecting innovative payment systems. A simulation and selection IT system is then developed that can be used to facilitate project stakeholders' satisfaction by selecting the most appropriate payment system for each project member. The proposed system considers alternative payment terms and conditions across the supply chain and in a transparent and negotiated manner.

Findings

The outcome should result in planning cash flows that satisfy all team members. The planned cash flow profiles are then used to monitor the implementation of the agreed payment system.

Originality/value

The main conclusion of the paper is that appropriate payment systems can act as a performance enabler and the provision of the simulation tool would result in project teams taking a more conscious and rational decision in selecting or designing these systems.

Details

Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1366-4387

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Article
Publication date: 1 October 2005

Victor Wong and Sammy Chiu

This article discusses the reasons and discourses adopted by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (Hong Kong SAR Government), with Mr Tung Chee Hwa as the Chief…

569

Abstract

This article discusses the reasons and discourses adopted by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (Hong Kong SAR Government), with Mr Tung Chee Hwa as the Chief Executive, in preparing young people to become more mature and responsible. In the Hong Kong context this means they should be willing to fulfil community obligations and opt for consultation rather than confrontation should individual or community rights be sought. Confucianism, named after Confucius (551‐479 BCE), has been and still is a vast and complicated system of philosophies, morals, rituals, and ideas, which for well over 2,000 years has informed and inspired the thinking and practice of countless people in Chinese societies and Asian countries in all important areas, including the economy and the polity (Tu, 1998a; Berthrong & Berthrong, 2000; Yao, 2002). Put simply, the goal of Confucian life is to create a peaceful world, with its ethical emphasis placed on the cultivation of the self and the promotion of harmonious and respectful relations with other people in different spheres of human activities.

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International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 25 no. 10/11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

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Article
Publication date: 20 August 2024

Chee Yew Wong, Christina W.Y. Wong and Sakun Boon-itt

Following counterarguments from previous studies, overwhelming evidence from meta-analyses shows that supply-chain integration (SCI) is not universally associated with improved…

61

Abstract

Purpose

Following counterarguments from previous studies, overwhelming evidence from meta-analyses shows that supply-chain integration (SCI) is not universally associated with improved performance. This study aims to clarify all the mechanisms purported to reach the combined effects of SCI dimensions.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, the authors first conducted a literature review and identified the effects of different individual SCI dimensions and their interactions and mediation, or arcs of integration, as reported by past studies. Data from a survey of 348 firms were analyzed using multiple regressions, structural equation modeling and latent class analysis.

Findings

The results showed that the positive independent associations between SCI dimensions and operational performance change as they interact. Larger combinational effects were found in a second-order SCI construct and a mediation model. Smaller effects and fewer significant paths (and even negative signs) were also found. This shows that more SCI is not always better. Finally, configurational effects varied: the latent class analysis showed that a more inward (internal integration) gestalt performed better for some firms.

Research limitations/implications

Some variables that could affect operations performance were missing from the models, and this paper did not specify the directions of relationships among the five performance dimensions. The authors are aware of cumulative models, but they are not within the scope of this paper. In addition, this study did not consider other sociocultural factors that may influence different dimensions of SCI.

Originality/value

This study shows SCI dimensions play different roles. Therefore, it is needed to theorize the distinct roles of internal and external integration and how they somehow compensate or substitute for each other. The results suggest that future studies need to reexamine the universal predictions especially from resource-based, resource-advantage and relational views. SCIs are not inimitable and rare resources for all firms. Furthermore, implementing SCI does not guarantee resource and relational advantages for all firms.

Details

Journal of Global Operations and Strategic Sourcing, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-5364

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Article
Publication date: 11 February 2019

Chee Kwong Lau and Li Li Wong

The purpose of this paper is to answer the fundamental question about why the shares of property developers are traded at market discounts by focusing on property developers from…

555

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to answer the fundamental question about why the shares of property developers are traded at market discounts by focusing on property developers from Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore.

Design/methodology/approach

It measures market discount using market-to-book ratio (MTB) and specifies the relations between MTB and the hypothetical determining factors (revenue recognition policy, investment property measurement policy, related party (RP) transaction disclosures and economic rent) in the presence of relevant control variables.

Findings

This study finds that aggressive revenue recognition and investment property measurement policies increase market discounts, but that RP transactions generally contribute positively to reduce the market discounts of property developer shares. Specifically, RP transactions are value-enhancing only if property developers adopt a conservative revenue recognition policy, because markets sensibly see RP transactions that are part of an aggressive revenue recognition policy as earnings management for tunnelling by controlling shareholders, and hence react with discounts. It is also observed that when property developers generate insufficient profit to cover their cost of equity, this generally leads to their shares being traded at market discounts. However, an aggressive revenue recognition policy can reduce market discount if early recognition contributes positively to economic rent.

Practical implications

This study provides valuable evidence of the economic consequences (market discounts) of accounting choices on recognition and measurement, and the disclosure of accounting information. This is crucial to managers of property developers in managing their firm values when exercising accounting discretion.

Originality/value

This study provides empirical evidence on market discounts as they relate to property developers, which has been limited (past studies focus on property investment companies and real estate investment trusts).

Details

Journal of Property Investment & Finance, vol. 37 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-578X

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Article
Publication date: 8 February 2019

Wai Kwok Benson Wong

The purpose of this paper is to explain how post-1997 Hong Kong has been perceived in Taiwan and to critically evaluate the demonstration effects of Hong Kong under the “One…

252

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explain how post-1997 Hong Kong has been perceived in Taiwan and to critically evaluate the demonstration effects of Hong Kong under the “One Country, Two Systems” policy on cross-strait relations.

Design/methodology/approach

“Today’s Hong Kong, Tomorrow’s Taiwan” has become a dominant discourse in cross-strait relations in recent years. The paper has adopted discourse analysis of selected texts during and after the 2014 Sunflower Movement to elucidate the disapproval of the developments of post-handover Hong Kong and the construction of the Movement’s self-identity.

Findings

It has observed the following arguments which shaped the prevailing perceptions among critics of the “One Country, Two Systems” policy: political infiltration of China in Hong Kong could be extended to Taiwan in the sense that the Beijing authorities would adopt the identical approach to manipulate Taiwan through the cross-strait trading agreements; negative perceptions and images of China and Chinese capitals as a collective aggressor and a threat, raising fear and worries in both Hong Kong and Taiwan; and Kuomintang, as a ruling party at that time under the leadership of President Ma Ying-jeoh, was dismissed by protesters as an incompetent gatekeeper and defender of Taiwan’s interests.

Originality/value

The pervasive sentiments and perceptions about post-1997 Hong Kong has been articulated discursively by the young activists in Taiwan and Hong Kong into a statement – “Today’s Hong Kong, Tomorrow’s Taiwan” – which has brought about a somewhat unexpected bonding effect between Hong Kong and Taiwan through a strong disapproval of “One Country, Two Systems” and the China factor, which has be reproduced, delivered and circulated in both societies since 2014.

Details

Asian Education and Development Studies, vol. 8 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-3162

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Article
Publication date: 14 November 2019

Chung Fun Steven Hung

The purpose of this paper is to assess the intra-party conflicts in Hong Kong’s Democratic Party (DP) and their implications for broader democratic processes in the territory. It…

149

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the intra-party conflicts in Hong Kong’s Democratic Party (DP) and their implications for broader democratic processes in the territory. It also examines some other thematic issues including: the party’s policy decision-making process, candidate selection, party membership and mergers, and their overall relevance for democratisation in Hong Kong.

Design/methodology/approach

The study gives a historical review of intra-party conflicts. The concept of factionalism is applied to better understand the DP in Hong Kong’s political space.

Findings

Hong Kong is unique and popular models of party conflicts are hardly applicable to the country. Intra-party conflict is an obvious, expected conflict because of differences in formation, leadership, manifestoes and ideologies. The present author tries to examine the case with a view to making a novel contribution.

Originality/value

The study of political factionalism is not uncommon in Hong Kong but this paper intends to study intra-party elite conflicts and self-democratisation of the Hong Kong DP as a case study which is seldom addressed. Consolidation is a possible scenario and its presence is evident when political elites increasingly demonstrate commitment towards creating a democratic regime and when they hold strong beliefs in democratic procedures and institutions as crucial to governing public life.

Details

Asian Education and Development Studies, vol. 9 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-3162

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Article
Publication date: 5 September 2008

Wai Dam Sam Yu

The purpose of this paper is to study the similarities of the normative ideas underpinning the welfare‐to‐work measures for young people in Hong Kong and the UK. These normative…

757

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study the similarities of the normative ideas underpinning the welfare‐to‐work measures for young people in Hong Kong and the UK. These normative ideas include the two respective Governments' views on their ideal model of the relationship between individual and society, and Etzioni's and Confucian ideas on how people's attempts to fulfill social obligations can reduce moral deficits. It is believed that the study of these issues contributes to the examination of the ethnocentric bias in the analysis of social welfare and different ways that non‐Western governments organize social welfare in response to foreign ideas.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper starts by discussing the ethnocentric bias in the study of social welfare. Then it examines the similarities of the normative ideas of the welfare‐to‐work measures for young people in Hong Kong and the UK, and discusses how the examination of these similarities helps us understand the ethnocentric bias in the analysis of social welfare.

Findings

The paper shows the ethnocentric bias arising from over‐emphasizing the differences between the ways in which social welfare is organized in Western societies and non‐Western societies, and the ethnocentric bias arising from taking for granted that people in non‐Western societies passively accept the dominance of Western models in shaping the development of their social welfare system, even if it appears that Western ideas share many similarities to their indigenous ideas.

Originality/value

The paper shows different types of ethnocentric bias in the analysis of social welfare and different possible ways that non‐Western governments could organize social welfare in response to foreign ideas.

Details

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 28 no. 9/10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

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Article
Publication date: 2 October 2017

Yiu Chung Wong and Jason K.H. Chan

The purpose of this paper is to explore the emergence of civil disobedience (CD) movements in Hong Kong in the context of the notion of civil society (CS).

399

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the emergence of civil disobedience (CD) movements in Hong Kong in the context of the notion of civil society (CS).

Design/methodology/approach

The paper begins by rigorously defining the notion of CD, as well as the concept of CS and tracing its development in Hong Kong over the past several decades. By using a model of CS typology, which combines the variables of state control and a society’s quest for autonomy (SQA), the paper aims to outline the historical development of CD movements in Hong Kong. It also discusses the recent evolution of CS and its relationship with CD movements, particularly focusing on their development since Leung Chun-ying became the Chief Executive in 2012. Finally, by using five cases of CD witnessed in the past several decades, the relationship between the development of CS and the emergence of CD in Hong Kong has been outlined.

Findings

Four implications can be concluded: first, CD cannot emerge when the state and society are isolated. Second, the level of SC and the scale of CD are positively related. Third, as an historical trend, the development of SQA is generally in linear progress; SQA starts from a low level (e.g. interest-based and welfare-based aims) and moves upwards to campaign for higher goals of civil and political autonomy. If the lower level of SQA is not satisfied, it can lead to larger scale CD in future. Fourth, the CD movement would be largest in scale when the state-society relationship confrontational and when major cleavages can be found within CS itself.

Originality/value

This paper serves to enrich knowledge in the fields of politics and sociology.

Details

Asian Education and Development Studies, vol. 6 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-3162

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Article
Publication date: 14 September 2012

Timothy W.W. Yuen, Alan C.K. Cheung and Ping Man Wong

To prepare Hong Kong students to face a rapidly changing twenty‐first century, the Hong Kong Government implemented a major curriculum reform entitled Learning to Learn – The Way…

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Abstract

Purpose

To prepare Hong Kong students to face a rapidly changing twenty‐first century, the Hong Kong Government implemented a major curriculum reform entitled Learning to Learn – The Way Forward in Curriculum Development. This reform has shaped the direction of Hong Kong's school education since 2001. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the reform from the perspectives of the major stakeholders, namely principals, teachers, and students.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper was written based on the data obtained from a large‐scale study that covered over 250 primary and secondary schools, or about 20 per cent of the total population in Hong Kong. Both qualitative (focus group interviews) and quantitative methods (questionnaire survey) were employed in the study.

Findings

The findings indicated that moderate progress has been made in students’ overall performance in generic skills, positive values and attitudes, language proficiency, and over the key learning areas. On the other hand, the progress made in secondary schools was perceived to be less than that made in primary schools. The views of frontline teachers could also be different from senior teachers and principals as to the degree of achievement. There also existed a gap as the progress reported for critical thinking and self learning abilities might be less favourable when compared to those reported for IT, reading habits and healthy lifestyle.

Originality/value

The original findings and policy suggestions of the paper are of reference value to curriculum policy planners, researchers and educators.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 26 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

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