Hong Kong civil service recruitment rises after letting university students apply for gov’t jobs 2 years before graduation
Hong Kong Free Press
Applications to join Hong Kong’s civil service have increased after the government opened recruitment to university students up to two years before their graduation amid a high turnover rate of government employees.
Applicants for the position of customs inspectors has doubled compared to last year, with 7,600 new applicants in the summer recruitment period this year, Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung told lawmakers on Thursday.
Additionally, 6,300 people applied to become immigration officers, marking an increase of 40 per cent compared to 4,500 applicants last year.
From June 1, undergraduate and graduate students have been allowed to apply for civil service roles up to two years before graduation.
According to Yeung, 22 grades across different apartments have started to recruit university students.
“The new measure has been well received, with rising numbers in applications compared to last year,” Yeung said in Cantonese, adding that the government is using a variety of measures to retain and hire talent.
With more Hongkongers pursuing studies in mainland China, the government was also recruiting in the mainland, Yeung said. A test centre has already been set up in Beijing for civil service entrance exams, and the government will open a new centre in Shanghai this year.
The city has seen a stark increase in resignations from the public service in recent years. There were 3,743 resignations in the 2021-2022 year, up from 1,863 the previous year, according to a Legislative Council document.
The city currently has 173,643 civil servants.
Persistent non-performers
In addition, the government will review and streamline procedures to retire civil servants with “persistent sub-standard performance”, Yeung said on Friday after meeting with representatives of four civil service consultative councils.
“Improving and strengthening the handling of persistent non-performers is one of the key measures to further enhance civil service management, ” she said.
According to the law, if an officer’s performance remains “persistently sub-standard” despite supervision and assistance, supervisors can “retire” the officer in public interest.
Currently, after management kick-start the mechanism of retirement in the public interest, a civil servant can make up to four representations. After procedures are streamlined, the outgoing employee will only have two opportunities to present their representations to enhance efficiency, Yeung said.
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