The word "talent" has recently become a social focus. The long-term development of Hong Kong's economy is inseparable from attracting and retaining talents, especially in some professional industries.
In the first part, the author preliminarily compared the talent attraction of Hong Kong and 5 countries or regions.
This article cuts in from another angle, allowing readers to understand the brain drain situation in Hong Kong from the digital side, which will specifically target the number of employees in some important industries.
Attracting Talent Series 2 of 3
1. The young workforce is shrinking
In recent years, there has been a wave of immigration in Hong Kong, a considerable part of which is from young people, which has brought a certain impact on the labor market.
While the government doesn't count the exact number of people who have moved out of the country, there are other figures to help observe the situation.
According to the "Labor Force by Age" of the Census and Statistics Department, in the second quarter of 2022, Hong Kong's labor force was 3,750,200, down 3.49% from the same period last year.
Among them, in the age group of 20 to 39 years old, the labor force fell across the board. Among them, the number of people aged 20 to 24 decreased by 14.98% compared with the same period of last year, which is quite wide.
According to the definition of the statistical report, the labor force refers to the non-hospitalized population on land aged 15 and above, including the employed population and the unemployed. Housekeepers, retirees and all persons under the age of 15 who cannot work at any time or are not looking for work are subject to Defined as the non-working population.
(Data source: Census and Statistics Department)
2. Decrease in employment in finance and I&T-related industries
In the future, both finance and innovation will be important development directions for Hong Kong.
According to the "Quarterly Report on General Household Survey" of the Census and Statistics Department, in the second quarter of 2020, there were 214,200 employed persons in the financial industry, compared with 216,100 in the same period in 2021, similar figures.
But by the second quarter of 2022, the number dropped to 204,500.
In the "information and communications" industry, employment was 137,800 in the second quarter of 2020, slightly decreased to 133,500 in the second quarter of 2021, and further fell to 127,000 in the second quarter of 2022.
The same is true for the "professional and business services" industry. The number of employed persons was 397,700 in the second quarter of 2020, slightly increased to 414,400 in the second quarter of 2021, and fell back to 387,900 in the second quarter of 2022.
▼Changes in the number of employees in three important industries▼
(Data source: Census and Statistics Department)
3. The high cost of living in Singapore is fatal to the attractiveness of talent
According to the "2021 IMD World Talent Competitiveness Report", Hong Kong's ranking in "attracting and retaining talent" dropped from 18th to 26th (Singapore rose from 22nd to 15th in the same period).
There are two main items that lose points: the cost of living is too high (including housing prices), ranking 61; the problem of airborne particles is serious, ranking 41.
In the INSEAD Global City Talent Competitiveness Index, Hong Kong ranks 20, the second highest among Asian cities, but just behind rival Singapore (7th).
Hong Kong is losing talent, and rival Singapore is catching up.
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4. The number of talents entering the country has not recovered to the pre-epidemic level
Hong Kong mainly has 6 schemes for importing overseas talents, including "General Employment Policy", "Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents", "Quality Talents Admission Scheme", "Technology Talents Admission Scheme", "Non-local Graduates Remaining/Returning Employment Arrangement in Hong Kong" " and "Admission Scheme for the Second Generation of Chinese Hong Kong Permanent Residents", of which the first four are the most important.
According to the statistics of the Immigration Department, the total number of approved applications for the four programs has dropped sharply since the start of the epidemic in 2020, and has not returned to the pre-epidemic level today.
(Data source: Immigration Department)
5. Serious loss of manpower in public medical care Lu Chongmao: Young doctors leave as soon as they obtain specialist qualifications
In the Census and Statistics Department's report, it is difficult to know the manpower loss of doctors and nurses, because the industry-related classification of the Census and Statistics Department is "human health care and social work activities", including practitioners from other industries.
However, according to the Government's reply to the Legislative Council in April this year, in 2021-22, the number and turnover rate of doctors and nurses under the Department of Health and the Hospital Authority will be significantly higher than in previous years.
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In an interview with Hong Kong and Taiwan last month, the Secretary for Medical and Health, Lu Chongmao, pointed out that in the past, many older or more experienced medical staff left the public medical system earlier, but the situation has changed in recent years, with the loss of employees aged 34 to 39. The rate is relatively high, some may leave soon after obtaining the specialist qualification, and individual doctors may be due to immigration.
Wu Jiezhuang: The obvious decline in the youth labor force is a wake-up call for the future
Member of the Legislative Council Election Committee, Mr. Ng Kit-chung, said that he is very concerned about Hong Kong's youth and talent policy, and believes that the reasons for the decline in the young labor force are comprehensive, and a considerable part of them are leaving Hong Kong, perhaps to study for further education, and some of them are foreigners. Seek employment, such as participating in the Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Programme.
However, he agrees that the significant drop in the young labor force this year is a warning sign for Hong Kong as a whole. "The question is, why don't these young intellectuals choose to stay in Hong Kong?"
Wu Jiezhuang mentioned that the government has not yet completed the statistics of the number of Hong Kong people emigrated and left Hong Kong, and the situation is not ideal. In order to prescribe the right medicine for the talent problem, the first step is to understand the seriousness of the problem and grasp the exact number.
Secondly, the government needs to show the youth that there are still opportunities for career development in Hong Kong. I hope that the Policy Address next month will discuss it in detail.
Wu Jiezhuang.
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