New crown pneumonia │ Dialogue in the dark was established for the first time in ten years

Social News

Written by: Hou Cailin

2020-05-17 10:00

The epidemic of new coronary pneumonia continued, and all walks of life were greatly affected. Based on the safety of visitors and employees, the dialogue experience hall for social enterprises in the dark, which has been established for ten years, has been temporarily closed after the Lunar New Year. Chief Executive Officer Zhu Yueru described that the venue has been "zero-income" for three consecutive months. "In the face of close ties, you can continue to survive. You must go to close. The salary of 40 employees plus the rent is already over one million." Do something that has not been tried in ten years-write to the government and ask for emergency assistance payments, but the bureau said that it will not grant special funding for individual cases.

Under the haze of the epidemic, a group of employees in the experience hall did not stop working. Instead, it will actively develop online live broadcasts, and a group of visually impaired people will send anti-epidemic messages to the public through the Internet. Zhu Yueru said bluntly: "I don't want to break up the team, because cohesion is important." Therefore, he insisted on not reducing wages or laying off employees, and hoped to "step by step" through transformation.

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Three consecutive months of zero income, rental labor costs over one million

The social enterprise dialogue in the dark aims to lead the participants into the all-black experience, and the guides lead the citizens to experience their world. About half of the 40 employees in the venue are disabled. However, under the epidemic situation, the venue was closed after the Chinese New Year, and it is still open for an indefinite period.

Asked about the decline in income, Zhu Yueru, the chief executive of the Dialogue in the Dark (Hong Kong) Foundation, said bluntly: "The business suspension was started in February, which is zero income. So there is no reduction in the department, because it has been zero income for the third month." Zhu Yueru said, experience In the ten years since its establishment, the museum has never asked for government support, but this time it was affected by the epidemic, and it once faced operational difficulties. "In the face of close ties, you can continue to survive. It will be necessary to close. The salary of 40 employees plus the rent has exceeded 100. "Yuan", Zhu Yueru can only write to Luo Zhiguang, Secretary of the Labor and Welfare Bureau, requesting the Bureau to issue emergency assistance.

Write to the Labour and Welfare Bureau for help Only received: no measures will be introduced for individual requests

There were echoes about two weeks after the letter was sent to the experience hall. Zhu Yueru said, "Echoes are the answer. Qu (the government) will not implement measures in response to individual requests", but she said bluntly that "there will not be too disappointed." The letter is sent not only for the dialogue in the dark, but for a number of social enterprises. The biggest purpose is to "talk to us (social enterprise) is in dire straits". Zhu Yueru said that although the government did not issue emergency aid, he agreed that the salary subsidies in the second round of the epidemic prevention and anti-epidemic fund of the government would be helpful to the experience museum. Go forward. "

Zhu Yueru, Chief Executive Officer of "Dialogue in the Darkness (Hong Kong)", said that under the epidemic, the operation of the Experience Pavilion was difficult, but she was confident in the future of the Experience Pavilion. (Photo by Huang Shuhui)

Stop business and non-stop work, transform to online development

Facing the violent epidemic, Zhu Yueru and a group of employees did not stop looking for a way out. "Although the business is stopped, there is no work stop." The Experience Pavilion is actively transforming, including bringing some physical experiences to the Internet, and a group of visually impaired tour guides also learn to transform themselves into "web anchors". Through webcasts, they give out anti-epidemic tips and share visual impairment to students People's lives.

Zhu Yueru expressed that he hopes to provide customers with experience under the epidemic, and hopes to "bring alternative learning" to students. During the live broadcast, "hundreds of students are together, there is a sun exposure process, and a sun interaction." The Experience Hall also specially hires directors and radio DJs to instruct staff, "Teach you how to talk, shoot, and become a little actor." The Experience Museum will also consider promoting the online experience as a fee-based service in the future to maintain revenue.

At the same time, the Experience Pavilion also launched "Future Tickets", allowing customers to purchase tickets that can be used after the venue reopens at a discounted price to try to maintain revenue.

Zhu Yueru, Chief Executive Officer of "Dialogue in the Dark (Hong Kong)", said that the Experience Museum is actively transforming and bringing some physical experiences to the Internet. (Photo by Huang Shuhui)

No layoffs and no pay cuts will "step by step"

Talking about the past ten years, the experience hall can maintain its operation by providing unique experiences and various activities, and Zhu Yueru is also blunt. Facing the predicament of the epidemic that had never been encountered, Zhu Yueru said, "Everyone is happy and happy, so I have to know how to deal with it immediately." The venue insists on not reducing wages or laying off employees. "I don't want the team to break up because cohesion is important." So the current goal is to "step by step." Although it is unknown when the epidemic will end, I believe that the team will gather together to drive positive energy, and the physical training experience needs to be reduced immediately. I also believe that the venue can continue to operate through creative methods such as the development of the Internet. optimism".

Under the epidemic, some people also chose to lend a helping hand to social enterprises. Hong Kong health care products company Japan is destined to subsidize 50,000 yuan in the dialogue in the dark, and proposes a support plan. From 9 to October this month, it will provide a subsidy to the dialogue in the dark according to product sales to support the venue ’s continued employment and Support the visually impaired.

Zhu Yueru, Chief Executive Officer of "Dialogue in the Dark (Hong Kong)", expressed confidence in the operation of Dialogue in the Dark. (Photo by Huang Shuhui)

"Hong Kong 01" asked the Labor and Welfare Bureau and the Home Affairs Bureau about the appeal in the dark. A government spokesman replied that in response to the poor business environment since the middle of last year, the Financial Secretary has successively announced four rounds of relief measures involving more than 30 billion yuan since August last year. Meanwhile, in 2020-21 The Budget also proposes a series of relief measures to "support enterprises, secure employment, boost the economy, and relieve the people's hardship" to support enterprises including social enterprises (hereinafter referred to as social enterprises).

SWD's "Entrepreneurship Show Talent" helps disabled people find employment. Social enterprises can apply for additional financial difficulties.

At the same time, various policy bureaus and departments have launched a number of support measures related to social enterprises and social innovation-related subsidies under the existing framework. With a view to allowing social enterprises to receive appropriate assistance as soon as possible. The "Entrepreneurship Showcase" program (hereinafter referred to as the "Project") of the Social Welfare Department was established to improve the employment of people with disabilities. If the social enterprise projects in the planned contract period face huge financial difficulties, the relevant social enterprises may consider applying for additional funding from the Advisory Committee on Employment Promotion of Persons with Disabilities to meet operating expenses. For details of the arrangement, please contact the Social Welfare Department in charge of the scheme. In addition, the plan and the "Partnership for Self-Strengthening" community collaboration plan under the Home Affairs Department and the "Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Fund" under the Poverty Alleviation Committee have all launched support measures for the early disbursement of the next operating expenditure.

In addition, in response to the threat of the new coronavirus epidemic to local economic activities, the government earlier established a "prevention and anti-epidemic fund" with a total amount of about 30 billion yuan, and is implementing the second round of "anti-epidemic and anti-epidemic" involving 137.5 billion yuan at full speed. Fund "measures.

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