As most of us know already, Hong Kong is considered an administrative region of China. This means that most of the decisions when it comes to governance, policy-setting, budget planning and resource allocation are influenced by the government of the People’s Republic of China.
With that said, speculations have come out that when it comes to demand for foreign domestic helpers, China may just attract more workers than Hong Kong because of certain key points. However, that decision is still up to the domestic workers themselves; but let’s takes a look at the pros and cons for each country.
Choosing Between Hong Kong or China for Employment
A Filipino recruitment industry leader shared that working conditions in Hong Kong has advantages over other countries like Singapore, Brunei, or Malaysia, as shared in a report by Asia Times.
Also, Filipino domestic helpers would still choose Hong Kong as their ‘best’ work destination even if mainland China would open its doors for employment.
This is in response to news that came out in November when Philippine Budget Secretary Benjamin E Diokno announced that China is looking to hire around 10,000 foreign domestic workers in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.
Furthermore, a top Philippine labour official cited that Filipino workers could earn up to HKD 15,000 (USD 1,912) per month in mainland China. This is well above the monthly pay offered in Hong Kong which starts at HKD 4,410.
According to Society of Hong Kong Accredited Recruiters of the Philippines (SHARP) head Alfredo Palmiery, while some people fear that migrant workers in Hong Kong would soon transfer to China because of the higher pay offered, he also cited that Hong Kong has established a number of good working standards for domestic helpers over the years. This still makes Hong Kong the preferred work destination for domestic helpers from the Philippines, he added.