Copyright scmp
Hong Kong’s jobless rate rose to 3.9 per cent between July and September, with higher unemployment in social work and construction, authorities said. Preliminary data released by the Census and Statistics Department on Monday showed the unemployment rate rose by 0.2 percentage points over the preceding three-month period. This marks the highest rate since the three-month period between July and September 2022, when it was 4 per cent. Unemployment in the food and beverage sector remained unchanged, while improvements were seen in the financing and health sectors, the department said. The underemployment rate also remained unchanged at 1.6 per cent. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said some sectors would continue to face challenges during the economic restructuring despite the overall job growth supported by the continued expansion of Hong Kong’s economy. “The increasing external uncertainties could also weigh on corporate hiring sentiment,” he said. “The government will continue to closely monitor the labour market situation and facilitate job-seeking through enhancing dissemination of employment information.” The city’s unemployment rate stood at 3.7 per cent between May and July, up by 0.2 percentage points from the April to June figure, and remained unchanged between June and August. Some unionist lawmakers took the floor earlier this month to urge Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s administration to further limit labour imports to protect the local workforce. In last month’s policy address, Lee had proposed stricter rules for bringing in waiters and junior cooks under the Enhanced Supplementary Labour Scheme, requiring employers to have at least two full-time local workers in those positions and extending the local recruitment period from four to six weeks. During a three-day debate over the policy blueprint, lawmaker Chau Siu-chung argued that the measures should apply to all sectors and urged authorities to review the scheme every three months and adjust it according to market conditions. Authorities should halt the importation of labour in the catering sector, he added, citing the rising jobless rate, which indicated sufficient manpower locally.
