Government to give Hong Kong bus operators masks – but supply must be paid back later
- Move sparks complaints by union, which suggests cash payments instead
- City’s bus drivers down to one mask per day from two previously
Hong Kong’s franchised bus operators have sought help from the government for masks amid a citywide shortage, but are told they would have to pay back the supply at a later date.
The request came as two bus giants, KMB and Citybus & New World First Bus (NWFB), admitted they were out of masks for drivers. The former employs about 9,000 drivers while the latter has 3,800.
“To ensure our staff are well-equipped with masks to reduce the risks of infection, we have provided each employee with one mask daily,” a spokeswoman for Citybus and NWFB said.
Hong Kong has been grappling with the coronavirus, which causes the disease Covid-19. As of Friday morning the city had recorded 69 cases and two related deaths. Globally, the number of infections rose to more than 76,700, mostly in mainland China, while the death toll stood at more than 2,200.
“As we only have a limited stock, we have borrowed some masks from the government to ensure our staff can maintain services … Now our stock, including those from the government, can last for a month.”
The spokeswoman said they promised to return the same amount of new masks to the government once they had fresh stock. “We have been working very hard to source masks through different channels.”
