Hong Kong workforce to shrink by 20,000 yearly as key sectors face shortages

Hong Kong's workforce is expected to decline by approximately 20,000 individuals annually until 2028, despite efforts to attract foreign labor and talent, with critical shortages particularly in skilled technical workers. According to a government report, the shortfall will narrow to 130,000 by 2028, down from an initial estimate of 180,000, but key sectors like innovation, aviation, construction, city operations, and healthcare will continue to experience labor challenges.

Acting Secretary for Labour and Welfare Ho Kai-ming noted that AI adoption will likely lead to less demand for entry-level positions and some restructuring of clerical jobs, impacting fresh graduates and middle-aged clerical staff most severely. The workforce is projected to drop from 3.47 million in 2025 to 3.4 million in 2028, with a significant decline in workers aged 25 to 34, amounting to 64,000.

Without labor and talent importation, the workforce would shrink further to 3.21 million, with the manpower gap expanding to 300,000. The mismatch between job requirements and jobseekers' expectations has worsened, with unemployment standing at 3.8 percent and over 150,000 people out of work. The shortage of skilled technical workers and manual laborers is partly due to higher education levels and an aging workforce, with the median age of manual laborers reaching 54 and skilled technical workers at 50.

The report projects a shortage of 48,000 to 53,000 skilled technical workers and 36,000 to 41,000 manual laborers, accounting for about 40 percent of the total gap. The largest gaps are expected among managers, supervisors, professionals, and service/sales workers, while clerical support workers will have a surplus of 25,000 to 30,000 due to AI adoption.