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Coronavirus pandemic
Hong KongHealth & Environment

Exclusive | Coronavirus: Hong Kong government wants to create 30,000 jobs in technology, health care and welfare sectors

  • Sources say roles to mainly be in jobs that focus on infection control
  • Programme expected to cost HK$6 billion and last two years

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Hong Kong’s unemployment rate reached 3.7 per cent in February, the highest in nine years. Photo: May Tse
Lilian Cheng

New positions in the information technology, health care and welfare sectors could fill a large part of the 30,000 job vacancies to be created by the Hong Kong government to boost the employment rate amid the Covid-19 crisis, the Post has learned.

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The measure, which is expected to cost HK$6 billion and last for two years, formed part of a HK$137.5 billion (US$17.4 billion) coronavirus relief package that Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor rolled out on Wednesday, aimed at saving ailing businesses and creating jobs.
Grappling with the twin impact of the coronavirus pandemic after months of anti-government protests, the city’s unemployment rate reached 3.7 per cent in February – the highest in nine years – according to official statistics.

Officials had warned the situation was likely to get worse in the months ahead, and as result, ensuring there were job opportunities available had become an important concern for the government, a source told the Post.

A worker cleans chairs in the coronavirus testing centre at AsiaWorld-Expo. Photo: Winson Wong
A worker cleans chairs in the coronavirus testing centre at AsiaWorld-Expo. Photo: Winson Wong
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Apart from the HK$80 billion wage scheme benefiting 1.5 million existing employees, sources familiar with the situation said more jobs relating to infection control would be created in the community, ranging from professional jobs such as technology experts, to frontline jobs in health care and cleaning.

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