Britain. By contrast, in Hong Kong there is a continuing strong demand for qualified manpower. The question is how to bring together effectively the potential supply of manpower and the local demand for that manpower.
9
At present, overseas recruitment efforts are limited mainly to job-specific exercises conducted either directly by individual employers, or indirectly through the services of employment agencies. They involve, by and large, relatively senior positions in a small number of large companies. Smaller employers wanting to fill vacancies at the middle or junior managerial and professional levels do not find it feasible to recruit
recruit overseas. Advertising costs alone make this a very unattractive option.
10
From the point of view of potential job-seekers, these recruitment exercises cannot provide them with adequate information about Hong Kong. For example, neither the job advertisement nor the services of employment agencies can provide sufficient non-job-related information, such as education for children or sufficiently authoritative views about Hong Kong's progression towards 1997.
This is understandable. Employment agencies would not wish to incur expenses on acquiring, maintaining and disseminating information unrelated to their specific tasks, and they cannot speak with authority on public issues.
Proposal
11
In order to attract back
back qualified manpower on a larger scale we have considered the possibility of attaching staff of Labour Department's Higher Education Employment Service to our Economic and Trade Offices overseas. This is not considered feasible because the extension of the service to overseas offices to undertake an active, outreaching and visible approach aimed at Hong Kong emigrants might antagonise those host countries having active immigration policies. This in turn could jeopardise Hong Kong's aim of setting up offices in countries such as Canada and Australia before 1997. The inclusion of employment advisory services in our overseas offices would also raise the question of whether this is a proper function for them to perform, given the provisions of the Joint Declaration. In the circumstances, it would seem more appropriate for this effort to be undertaken through a non-governmental presence in the host countries.
12
We propose that a joint venture company should be
established the main functions of which would be
(a) to establish, maintain and operate a computerised
database of
CONFIDENTIAL
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