雙語社評齊齊聽

英語 (足本收聽)

普通話 (足本收聽)

【明報專訊】ASIA TELEVISION LIMITED (ATV), which has defaulted on its salary payments, has yet to pay its employees their wages of last December. The latest development has seen a major shareholder in the broadcaster lending money to its employees in the name of a company he owns.

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亞視拖欠員工薪金，12月份薪金仍未支付，事態最新發展是大股東以名下其他公司的名義，借錢給員工。

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As disclosed by its employees, ATV's management met with some members of the staff one by one on Tuesday last week, and, citing the company's intention of "addressing their pressing needs", urged them to sign receipts acknowledging that they had borrowed money from a company owned by the major shareholder. On doing so an employee would receive a cheque for a sum equal to his salary of last December. He must repay the money if he leaves ATV. We understand that, as the end of the Chinese year is approaching, when there are many claims on one's purse, many ATV employees have signed such IOUs.

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亞視員工透露，公司管理層上周二以「解燃眉之急」為由，逐一約見一些員工，游說他們簽署一張承認向大股東名下公司借錢的收據，一經簽署即可獲發一張等同12月份薪金的支票，若離職便須立即還錢。年關將至，在在需財，據知不少亞視員工簽下借據。

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Explaining the arrangement, the ATV management claimed that the major shareholder had done so "with the best intentions, trying to help employees in difficulty make ends meet". If the major shareholder had opened his purse to help ATV employees because he could not bear to see them in need, they would have been happy, and he would have won a reputation for being chivalrous. However, what ATV employees have received has not been given gratis. They are the major shareholder's debtors. Not only have they been denied their pay, but they are now in debt too. Try as we may, we cannot see the "best intentions" the ATV management has mentioned. Furthermore, that the major shareholder was willing to lend money to employees shows he has the money to pay them. But he has lent them money instead of paying them. It is evidently more accurate to say he has an axe to grind.

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亞視管理層解釋借錢安排，乃大股東「純粹好心，為有困難的員工解決生計」。本來，若亞視大股東不忍員工生計無着，解囊濟助，員工自是歡喜，大股東也會贏得俠義美名，只是員工所得並非無償贈予，而是與大股東有債務關係，打工「無糧出」之餘，還欠下債項；因此，橫看直看，都感受不到管理層所說的「好心」，所謂何來。另外，亞視大股東肯向員工借錢，說明有財力支付薪金，現在卻寧願拖欠而給員工借錢，看來，另有用心才較準確反映真象。

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By lending ATV employees money the major shareholder has put himself at an advantage. Under a court order he has to sell a 10.75% stake in ATV. Tenders are now being invited. If, at this particular moment, ATV employees start to leave in droves because they are owed their pay, the sale of the stake will be made under even more unfavourable circumstances. One may say it is the ATV management's first priority to maintain the broadcaster's manpower and keep it in operation. For a mass exodus of its employees will further disincline potential buyers. Furthermore, shareholders in ATV will lose all their interests if it goes into liquidation. Though the ATV management has denied that money has been lent to employees to keep them from leaving, they have in fact been tied down.

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亞視當局的借錢安排，客觀效果對大股東的處境有利。大股東按法庭的裁決，要出售10.75%亞視股權，有關招標出售程序正在進行，此際若因為欠薪關係，亞視員工大量流失，對出售股權會帶來更多不利因素；現在維持足夠人手，保持亞視運作，應該是亞視當局的優先事項，因為若員工星散，買家意欲更低，設若發展到以清盤方式解決，則股東的權益將化為烏有。亞視管理層雖說借錢並非為綁住員工，客觀上起碼衍生綑綁效果，卻是事實。

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For too long ATV has not put the airwaves, which are precious public resources, to good use. This is why there is little real competition in the free-to-air TV market, and this has to do with the fact that Hong Kong TV programmes have become poorer and poorer in quality and the creative industry is at a low ebb. ATV's operation is now such that it can no longer carry out its functions as a free-to-air TV station. We gather that the Communications Authority has recommended that the government should not renew ATV's free-to-air TV licence. The Executive Council should promptly decide what to do with the ATV question so that the airwaves can be put to good use. If it does so, ATV employees will be able to decide what to do and plan their careers and even their lives instead of wasting time because things are uncertain. The message of the ATV lending saga is that its fate should be determined as soon as possible.

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長期以來，亞視並未善用珍貴的公共資源大氣電波，形成免費電視市場缺乏真正競爭，本港電視節目質素每况愈下，創意產業陷於低潮，都與此有關。現在亞視營運發展到這般狀况，實際上喪失了免費電視台的應有職能，據知通訊事務管理局已經向政府建議，不予亞視續牌，行政會議就此應該盡早決斷，解決亞視的問題，讓大氣電波對香港社會發揮積極作用，也可以使亞視員工知道去向，重新規劃自己的工作甚至人生，不至因為情勢不明朗而蹉跎歲月。亞視的命運應及早決斷，是今次股東向員工借錢而折射出來的信息。

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明報社評2015.01.23

Presented by lecturers of Hong Kong Community College, PolyU and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Danny Chan

HKCC Lecturer

www.hkcc-polyu.edu.hk/staff_directory/social_communication/details.php?id=76&lang=eng

鄭靜芳

香港專上學院講師

www.hkcc-polyu.edu.hk/staff_directory/social_communication/details.php?id=321&lang=chi

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