In the more than two years of the epidemic, the Hong Kong government sometimes banned flights and sometimes blocked flights, causing Filipino and Indonesian foreign domestic helpers to "stay" in their hometowns, and Hong Kong was plagued by a shortage of foreign domestic helpers.
The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Law Chi-kwong, wrote an article on Mother's Day today (8th), describing "the shortage of foreign domestic helpers and the dawn of dawn". He pointed out that 4,005 Filipino foreign domestic helpers arrived in Hong Kong last month, which is the largest number of Filipino domestic helpers who have come to Hong Kong since the epidemic. In the same month, 2,188 Indian domestic helpers came to Hong Kong.
Luo Zhiguang said that due to the easing of the epidemic in the Philippines and Indonesia, and the appropriate adjustment of immigration prevention and control measures in Hong Kong, the shortage of foreign domestic helpers has gradually emerged. The number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong has rebounded from the bottom to 332,000 at the end of last month.
However, there are also 16,000 foreign domestic helpers who have obtained work visas and are waiting to be arranged to come to Hong Kong. He pointed out that when Hong Kong's epidemic-controlled economy begins to recover, the labor shortage situation will soon appear, and it is necessary to increase the number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong to release more labor force. Going into the market will prevent the shortage of foreign domestic workers from becoming an obstacle to Hong Kong's economic recovery.
4,005 Filipino foreign domestic helpers arrived in Hong Kong in April, with a maximum of 617 a day
Luo Zhiguang posted on his blog that since last Christmas, Omicron caused an epidemic in the Philippines. The local epidemic began to slow down from the end of January this year, and the seven-day moving average of confirmed cases dropped to less than 200 cases per day at the end of April.
As a result, flights from the Philippines to Hong Kong have been resumed since April 1. In April, 4,005 Filipino foreign domestic helpers arrived in Hong Kong, which is the highest number of Filipino domestic helpers arriving in Hong Kong in the past two years since the epidemic. 617 more people arrived in Hong Kong on the same day, and since April 1, the flight circuit breaker mechanism has not been triggered for flights from the Philippines to Hong Kong.
On the other hand, the Omicron epidemic in Indonesia broke out a month later than the Philippines, and the peak occurred in mid-February.
Although Hong Kong has not completely banned Indonesian flights from coming to Hong Kong, in February and March, there was an average of one flight coming to Hong Kong every 16 days, and almost every flight would trigger the circuit breaker mechanism and be grounded for 14 days.
In April, 2,188 Indian servants came to Hong Kong. The Indonesian flight has not been interrupted for more than a month.
However, Luo Zhiguang pointed out that the epidemic situation in Indonesia has also gradually slowed down, and the number of confirmed cases has dropped to about 400 per day at the end of April. The last Indonesian flight that triggered the circuit breaker mechanism was a flight from Jakarta on April 8, and there were 2,188 Indian commissioners who came to Hong Kong in April. It is also the month with the largest number of Indian servants coming to Hong Kong in the more than two years since the outbreak.
Law Chi-kwong, Secretary for Labour and Welfare, said that due to the easing of the epidemic situation in the Philippines and Indonesia and the appropriate adjustment of immigration prevention and control measures in Hong Kong, the problem of shortage of foreign domestic workers is gradually emerging. (File photo)
The failure of foreign domestic helpers to arrive in Hong Kong has led to a decline in Hong Kong's labor force. Some people have to stay at home to take care of the elderly and young
Under the epidemic, Luo said that the number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong dropped from more than 400,000 at the peak in 2019 to 328,000 at the end of March this year, which is also one of the main reasons for the decline in Hong Kong's resident population and labor force in the past two years.
He explained that this phenomenon is not only due to the fact that foreign domestic helpers account for about one-tenth of the Hong Kong workforce, but also because many employed foreign domestic helpers fail to arrive in Hong Kong on time, causing some family members to leave the labor market and stay at home to take care of the elderly and young.
The number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong has rebounded to 332,000, but there are still 16,000 people waiting to come to Hong Kong
However, Law Zhiguang said that the number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong has recently rebounded from the bottom to 332,000 at the end of April, and there are currently 16,000 foreign domestic helpers who have obtained work visas and are waiting to be arranged to come to Hong Kong.
He emphasized that when the epidemic in Hong Kong continues to be under control, the economy begins to recover, the unemployment rate drops, and the shortage of labor force will soon appear. If the number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong can be increased, more labor force can be released to return to the market. Talent shortage will not become an obstacle to Hong Kong's economic recovery.
When the epidemic in Hong Kong continues to be contained and the economy begins to recover, the shortage of labor force will soon appear. If the number of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong can be increased, more labor force can be released to return to the market, and the shortage of foreign domestic helpers will not become an obstacle to Hong Kong's economic recovery.
Law Chi-kwong, Secretary for Labour and Welfare
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