Hong Kong’s economy has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and the unemployment rate of the construction industry is continuously rising.
     The Government will provide salary subsidies to employers who hire graduates and assistant professionals of the engineering, architectural, surveying, town planning and landscape sectors, the Development Bureau announced on June 11. The bureau explained that  Both new graduates and assistant professionals who have just completed professional training or are waiting to attend the professional assessment examination are facing difficulties in finding jobs. 

     A total of 1,750 subsidy places, divided into two groups, will be provided under the new measures. The first group is applicable to university students studying architecture, surveying, town planning and landscape architecture, and are graduating this year. Employers will receive a salary subsidy of $5,610 per month for providing recognised professional training to each employed graduate. The subsidy period is up to 18 months and a total of 500 subsidy places will be provided.

     The second group is applicable to assistant engineers who complete the training within this year but still need to obtain practical work experience. It is also applicable to assistant professionals who complete the training within this year and satisfy admission criteria of the professional assessments in the relevant sectors.

     Employers will receive a salary subsidy of $10,000 per month for providing opportunities for recognised professional practice to each assistant professional employed.  The subsidy period is up to 12 months and a total of 1,250 subsidy places will be provided. The subsidy scheme will be opened for application from June 19 to July 18. Click here for details.