According to Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO), it would be an offence for Patrick, (an employee of the travel agency) without the approval of his employer, to accept advantages (i.e. $30,000 from William) for putting William’s restaurant into the company’s approved list.  William might also violate POBO by offering bribes.

Although the commission was deposited into the account of Patrick’s wife, Patrick might still commit a corruption offence.  Under the POBO, a person is considered to have accepted an advantage even if a third party receives the advantage on his behalf.

Moreover, it is important to note that it shall be an offence under the POBO if any act (including includes promising, agreeing, soliciting or accepting advantages without permission, etc.) of bribery takes place in Hong Kong.

As an employee of the company, Jasper is regarded as an agent under the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO).  Without the company’s permission, he accepted red packets from customers for abusing his official duties, which might breach Section 9 of the POBO.  Both the offeror and acceptor of the bribes are guilty of the offence.

A red packet is a kind of advantage.  Section 2 of the POBO states that advantages include fee, gift, loan, reward, commission, office, contract, service, favour, payment, and more.  However, entertainment which refers to food and drink consumed on the occasion is excluded.  In addition, there is no monetary limit for advantage.  Therefore, Jasper’s acceptance of these advantages might have violated the law regardless of the amount involved.

Retail staff should adhere to company guidelines when selling products and providing company gifts.  Otherwise, it may lead to customer dissatisfaction or complaints, negatively impacting the company’s reputation. 

It would be an offence under Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO) for Ivan and Ian, who were employees of the department store, to accept the advantage, i.e., the monthly commission of $10,000, offered by Wong and Au for assisting the latter in overstating the quantity of toiletries without the permission of their employer.  Wong and Au might also commit an offence by offering bribes.  Furthermore, by overstating the purchase orders and acknowledging the false receipt, both Ivan and Ian might breach Section 9(3) of the POBO, which forbids employees from using documents containing false, erroneous or defective information to deceive their employer.  They might also commit an offence of conspiracy to defraud.

Ivan and Ian should adhere to their company’s code of conduct on handling persons having business dealings with the company and avoid gambling with suppliers.  While Ivan and Ian might seem very lucky to win a lot during mahjong games with Wong and Au, frequently gambling together and winning excessive amount might portray the perception that Wong and Au were losing to them deliberately so as to pass benefits to Ivan and Ian in return for favour at work.

Gloria might contravene Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO) if she, without the permission of her employer, the retail store, solicited and accepted gifts from subordinates for abusing her official duties to favour some staff members when arranging deployment, leaves or promotions.  Subordinates who offered the gifts might also commit an offence.

According to Section 11 of the POBO, once an agreement to offer and accept a bribe is reached, both the offeror and acceptor of the bribe shall commit an offence even if the acceptor claims that he did not actually have the power, right or opportunity to do so, did not intend to do so, or did not in fact do so.  Hence, Gloria and the subordinates who offered the advantages might still breach the POBO even if Gloria did not in fact show favour to them in staff management and the purpose of the bribery had not been carried out.

It is important for supervisors and subordinates to maintain a positive working relationship.  However, supervisors must avoid blurring the lines between personal and official capacities by accepting gifts from subordinates.  This could make them feel obliged to return the favour and ultimately hinder their ability to fulfil necessary personnel management and supervisory responsibilities.  Gloria’s behaviour may attract criticism and dissatisfaction from other subordinates and colleagues, negatively impacting management effectiveness.  Additionally, it can undermine employee morale and create an undesirable culture.

As an employee of the retail store, Frankie should always comply with the internal guidelines on product sale.  By taking this opportunity for personal gain, Frankie not only violated the internal guidelines but also breached the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO).  Frankie, as an agent, without the permission of the retail store, solicited and accepted rebates from Felix for reserving goods might violate Section 9 of the POBO.  Felix, as the offeror of the bribe, might also be guilty of the offence.

Retail staff should uphold integrity and perform their duties with high ethical standard.  Illegal behaviours ruin one’s career and create unfairness to other customers, ultimately damaging the company’s reputation.

Considering the close relationship with her brother-in-law, Janice should have observed her company’s internal guidelines on declaration of conflict of interest and refrained from being involved in the granting of contract. Conflict of interest situations such as this, if not dealt with properly, may easily lead to corruption.

Under the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO), a tour package is an advantage. Janice might breach the POBO if she, without the permission of the hotel, accepted the tour package as a reward for granting the contract to Tommy’s agency.  In that case, Tommy might also breach the POBO for offering of bribe.

According to Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO), it would be an offence if Karson, a hotel employee, without the permission of his employer, accepted an advantage, i.e., the red packet and the 2% rebate of the project sum, for awarding the renovation project to Kenneth and turning a blind eye to the substandard work.  Kenneth might also violate POBO by offering bribes.

According to Section 19 of the POBO, it shall not be a defence to show that the acceptance of advantage is customary in any profession, trade, vocation or calling.  Although the red packet was offered during the customary “God Worshipping” ceremony, the court shall determine the legality based on whether the recipient had obtained the permission from his principal.

Although Karson did not actively solicit advantages and might not have ultimately received any commission from Kenneth, the verbal agreement between the two parties to conceal the substantial work still constituted corruption.  According to Section 11 of the POBO, once an agreement to offer and accept a bribe is reached, both the offeror and acceptor of the bribe shall commit an offence even if the acceptor claims that he did not actually carry out the act as agreed.

Karson might also breach the Rules of Conduct of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE) which states that a member of HKIE shall discharge his duties with integrity and in accordance with the highest standards of business ethics; and neither give nor accept any gift, entertainment, payment or service of more than nominal value, to or from those having a business relationship with his employer or client without the consent of the latter.

Leo is regarded as an agent of the hotel.  Without the hotel’s permission, he accepted a rebate from Louis for abusing his official capacity to disclose other bidders’ information to the latter.  Leo might breach Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO) while Louis might also commit the offence by offering a bribe.  Accepting bribes, whether directly or indirectly through a third party, is against the law.  If the purpose of offering the advantage is to induce the agent to do an act in relation to his principal’s business, both the offeror and the recipient would commit an offence under the POBO.  Bidders’ or clients’ information is valuable to the hotel and staff members should strictly follow the guidelines laid down by the hotel for protecting confidential information.

On the other hand, hampers and gifts are advantages.  According to Section 19 of the POBO, custom or trade practice cannot constitute a defence.  If these gifts were offered to Leo with a corrupt motive, both Leo and Louis might commit a bribery offence, even if they were offered during festive occasions. Even if no corruption was involved, Leo should follow the hotel’s code of conduct regarding the acceptance of advantages to avoid conflict of interest.  He should be particularly cautious of the sweetening process initiated by Louis’ offer of gifts.  Accepting frequent gifts and favours will put the recipient in an obligatory position to reciprocate, compromising one’s objectivity in carrying out official duties and potentially leading to corruption.

It is an offence under Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO) for any agent, without the permission of his principal, to accept any advantage as an inducement to or reward for him to abuse his authority in relation to his principal’s affairs or business.

Bruce, as the chief chef of the hotel, is regarded as an agent.  He might breach Section 9 of the POBO for accepting money from Bob for turning a blind eye to the substandard food quality without the permission of the hotel.  Bob might also commit an offence for offering bribes.

Bruce’s unethical behaviour constituted a serious breach of his employer’s trust and caused unfairness to other suppliers and customers.  Moreover, substandard food quality might also jeopardise food safety if not properly addressed.

Employees of restaurants should always exercise prudence and integrity when managing sales records.  If Daisy abuses her position to accept advantages for providing assistance to Diana in concealing the illegal misappropriation of the restaurant sales, she might commit Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (POBO) and conspiracy to defraud. Diana might also commit the offences.

Employees must uphold a high standard of integrity and refrain from reaping personal gain through corrupt or other illegal means.  When encountering corruption temptation or suspecting any malpractice in the workplace, employees should immediately decline and report the incident to the company and the ICAC.  Deliberately concealing or shielding unlawful behaviour may give rise to suspicions of involvement in illegal activities.  Hence, it is crucial to take a stand against corruption and report it to the ICAC.