THE ARRANGEMENT for granting maternity leave has been changed after the Employment (Amendment) Ordinance 1997 took effect on 27 June 97. Related Civil Service Regulations were also amended accordingly. The new arrangement for taking maternity leave is as follows:

Eligible Officers. A pregnant civil servant having continuous service of not less than 40 weeks immediately before her commencement of maternity leave, regardless of how many children she has, is entitled to take maternity leave with full pay up to 10 weeks.

Submission of Application. Application for maternity leave should be made no later than 3 months before the expected date of confinement.

Commencement of Maternity Leave. On production of a medical certificate confirming pregnancy and specifying the expected date of confinement, you will be allowed to choose the commencement date of your maternity leave on a day within 2 to 4 weeks before your expected date of confinement.

Posting of Pregnant Officers. Should medical opinion suggest that the pregnant officer is unfit for heavy, hazardous or harmful work, she may, on production of such a medical certificate, request her formation commander to make appropriate arrangements.

Duration of Maternity Leave. Should the actual date of confinement take place before commencement of maternity leave, the 10-week maternity leave will be counted from the actual date of confinement. You are not normally allowed to resume duty within 6 weeks after the date of confinement. If you have exhausted the 10-week maternity leave on full pay within 6 weeks of your date of confinement, you should take vacation leave or no-pay leave as appropriate to make sure that you have no less than 6 weeks absence from duty after the date of confinement. However, you may be permitted to resume duty after the 4th week of your date of confinement upon production of a medical certificate confirming that you are fit to do so.

Confirmation of Date of Confinement. To allow timely adjustment of leave and the date of resumption of duty, the officer concerned should submit documentary evidence confirming the actual date of confinement within 8 weeks of her maternity leave.

This is a summary of the present arrangement for taking maternity after the changes of the related regulations and orders. For details you may read the following:

Civil Service Regulations 1297 and 1298; Civil Service Branch Circular No.10 of 1997; Headquarters Order No. 100 of 1997 Part Five; or call Cecilia Li, EO CS 1: 2860-3390 or Tam Ki-chu, SCO PR Leave & Benefits: 2860-3618.

As a token of appreciation, the Commissioner of Police will host a Garden Party for those officers who have been awarded the CP's Commendation or other higher level commendations this year. Also included on the guest list are the Executive Committee office bearers of the various disciplined and civilian staff associations within the Force, the Senior Directorate and all Major Formation Commanders. The party will be held between 5pm and 7pm on Thursday 6 November at CP's official residence. Dress for the occasion is informal and ties are not necessary. Because of limited parking space, a shuttle bus service has been arranged to take the guests from PHQ.

Leave Homes FORCE holiday bungalow accommodation is available from Oct 1 to Nov 30 for Gazetted and Inspectorate officers and their civilian counterparts as follows: Hoi Fu Fa Yuen in Macau, Nov 5-14, 17-20, 24-27, 30 Casa Peral Terrace in Macau, Nov 5-12, 18-30 Casa Sagre in Macau, Nov 5-12, 16-30 Ham Tin 10 1/F in Pui O, Nov 5-6, 9-13, 16-30 Accommodation after Dec 1, will be allocated by ballot. For reservations, apply to Personnel Services Branch Holiday Facilities Unit at 2804-1135. Applicants please use the new application forms(Rev 97). You cannot apply for more than one bungalow during the same period. Accommodation at reduced rates for Force members at: Mandarin Oriental Macau (2800-7338) New World Emperor Hotel Macau (2731-3488) Hotel Sintra Macau (2546-6944) Holiday Inn Macau (2800-5646) Hotel Ritz Macau (2739-9928) Gold Coast Hotel (2452-8888) Shenzhen Forum Hotel (2866-7699) Shenzhen Century Plaza Hotel (2598-0363); and Guanzhou Hai Tao Hotel (2311-2283) Interested colleagues should obtain a letter of introduction from the Personnel Services Branch Holiday Facilities Unit and contact the hotels directly for reservations.

POLICE OFFICERS' CLUB POC Membership Card Renewal IN order to update and computerise members' records and assess the number of active members, POC has launched a membership card renewal exercise. All police members will be able to re-apply for their new cards with effect from 1 October. All departmental civilian and retired officers can re-apply beginning 1 November. However, members who have obtained their membership cards on or after 1 July need not renew their cards. General grade civilian officers will be dealt with at a later stage. Membership card application forms are available from respective DSROs as well as at the POC and PSRC receptions. Application forms (with updated passport-sized photos of all family members) should be forwarded in person or by post to the Police OfficersÕ Club, Hung Hing Road, Causeway Bay. For applications delivered in person, please allow 14 days before collection. Postal applications will be ready in 21 days. Wine Tasting There will be a charity wine tasting on Friday 28 November in the POC Reading Room from 6pm to 8pm. Members pay $100 to be donated to charity. The wine list is pretty comprehensive and includes some excellent reds namely Chateau De L'oiseau '94, Pomerol and La Sirene de Giscours '95 Margaux. All accompanied by sumptuous French cheeses. To attend, please fax POC on 2838-9665 or phone 2591-1930 specifying your name, UI number and how many guests you intend to bring. SP Mike Howard presents prizes to best-dressed spooks at the recent children's Halloween party SP Danny and Mrs Holmes exchange places during the POC's recent "Looney Hour" Children's Christmas Party This popular party takes place on Sunday 14 December. Tickets are $95 each. Parents please remember to deliver your special gifts at least one week prior to the party so Santa will be able to make delivery on time. The party includes: Games and Santa; Bouncy Castle; Magic Show; Force Choir recital; Christmas tea party. New Year's Eve Ball This year come in Chinese or European formal evening attire. Cocktails from 7.30 to 8.30pm in the Grill Room. Five-course a la carte dinner with smoked salmon rose and cream of corgette soup for starters. The entree is an exquisite roasted duck breast a la orange served with butter noodles and seasonal vegetables. Followed by strawberry mille-feuille and cheese platter. Entertainment includes: fire juggling, disco, ballroom twisters, lucky draw, and of course the POC piper to ring in the new year. Breakfast served at 1am. At $700 per person, it's the bargain of the new year. Bookings can be made through POC reception: 2591-1924. Aerobics at POC Kinnie Chung is conducting aerobics classes Fridays from 7 to 8pm in the Gallery of POC. Call: 2557-4711 or page 71176336-8112. Force Remembrance Day Ceremony Will be held at the entrance to Caine House on 13 November at 10am.