[2] The executive branch proposed a minimum wage of HK$28 (~US$3.61) per hour in November 2010, which the Legislative Council voted to accept after much debate in January 2011.

[2] The Trade Boards Ordinance also gave the governor (and after 1997, the Chief Executive) the power to set minimum wages for piece-rate and time-rate work, and established penalties for non-compliance.

Legislator Tommy Cheung, who represents the catering functional constituency, suggested that the minimum wage be no greater than HK$20.

[12] Chief Executive Donald Tsang was opposed to the whole concept of a minimum wage, according to legislator Lee Cheuk-yan of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions.

Other voices of opposition included the free-market think tank Lion Rock Institute, as well as Miriam Lau of the Liberal Party, who gave estimates that between 30,000 and 170,000 jobs would be lost as a result of the proposal, depending on the wage adopted.

[13] The bill required the Chief Executive to propose a minimum wage level, which LegCo would then either approve or reject the amount.

[2] Among the amendments: On 10 November 2010, a HK$28 (~US$3.59) per hour rate was recommended by the Provisional Minimum Wage Commission and adopted by the Chief Executive-in-Council.

[5] The law does not mandate that meal breaks and rest days be paid; Secretary for Labour and Welfare Matthew Cheung stated that this should be decided by private negotiation between employers and employees.

[15] There were fears that the implementation of the law might actually lead to lower take-home pay for low-income workers who currently receive paid meal breaks.