11th Apr 2006 12:12
Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation11 April 2006 KCRC welcomes Government's announcement on way forward for rail merger (11 April 2006, Hong Kong) The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) todaywelcomed the Government's announcement on the terms for the proposed railmerger of the KCR and the MTR systems. KCRC Chairman, Mr Michael Tien, said: "We are pleased that the negotiationswith regard to the rail merger have entered into a new phase now that theGovernment has made an announcement on the way forward. We welcome the decisionand the balance struck on the interests of all concerned stakeholders includingthe travelling public, staff and shareholders." The merger of the MTR and KCR systems will bring benefits and convenience to thetravelling public. The public will be able to benefit from fare reductions, anobjective and transparent fare adjustment mechanism that would allow fares to goup or down, better integration of the railway networks and more customerfriendly interchanges. There will also be seamless interchange arrangements forfuture railway extensions. "Job security has been a major concern for our staff," said Mr Tien. "Overthe past two years, we have communicated with our staff and listened to theirviews about the possible merger. The post-merger corporation shall provide jobsecurity to all front line staff, as it relates to rail merger. As there will bemore jobs available than the number of surplus job positions arising from mergersynergies, this means good opportunities for staff after the merger." KCRC is fully committed to looking after the interests of all its staff goinginto the rail merger. On the date when the merger process is completed, all thestaff serving in the two corporations will be employed by the post-mergercorporation, retaining their respective prevailing employment terms andconditions. Eventually a single set of terms and conditions will be worked out,which will be based on a total package approach. The Corporation will conductstudies in conjunction with MTRCL in this respect. Mr Tien emphasised that the Corporation would continue to communicate with itsstaff members on developments regarding the rail merger and make every effort togain their understanding and trust through a consultation process. The Corporation will work hand in hand with the MTRCL and the Government todevelop an implementation plan to ensure a smooth integration. - End - This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
MTR.L