Hong Kong Equality Watchdog Seeks Compensation for Domestic Helper Fired After Cancer Diagnosis
Quick Look
- Hong Kong's equality watchdog, EOC, seeks HK$250,000 compensation for the family of Baby Jane Allas, a domestic helper fired in 2019 after a cervical cancer diagnosis.
- Allas died in 2021, and the District Court is now assessing the compensation amount for her five children.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Hong Kong's ordinance prohibits employers from firing employees due to disability. Baby Jane Allas was dismissed in 2019 after a cervical cancer diagnosis and died in 2021.
Hong Kong’s equality watchdog is seeking about HK$250,000 (US$31,900) in compensation for the family of a domestic helper who was sacked by her employer in 2019 after being diagnosed with advanced cervical cancer and later died.
According to the ordinance, it is unlawful for an employer to fire an employee on the grounds of their disability.
Five years after Allas died in 2021 at the age of 40 in her native Philippines, the District Court held a hearing on Thursday to assess how much compensation should be awarded to the late helper’s family. She is survived by five children.
The deceased’s younger sister, Mary Ann Allas Pereira, who is still working in Hong Kong as a domestic helper, earlier took over the proceedings.
The EOC accused Baby Jane Allas’s former employer of firing the deceased after asking for hospital documents as proof of her condition. She was earlier diagnosed with cervical cancer after undergoing a biopsy.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The District Court will award compensation to Baby Jane Allas's family.
Very likely · Within weeks
Open Questions
- What will be the final compensation amount awarded?
- What was the employer's defense in court?
