Infographic:Labour Force
【明報專訊】The Census and Statistics Department has announced that the latest unemployment rate has risen to 6.4%. On 21 October, Cathay Pacific also stated that the company had cut 8,500 jobs. What is the current situation of the Hong Kong labour force?
◆What is''underemployment''?
Underemployment means that you are employed but you involuntarily work for less than 35 hours a week. As of September 2020, the underemployment rate in Hong Kong was 3.8%.
◆How many people are there in Hong Kong labour force?
3,884,600. It comprises 59.6% of the population aged 15 and over.
◆How many civil servants (公務員) are there in Hong Kong?
As of June 2020, 177,327 people worked as civil servants.
◆How many cases of occupational injuries (職業傷亡) were reported last year?
32,872 cases were reported in 2019. This number was surprisingly high! The most common type of occupational diseases(職業病) is occupational deafness. Can you think of any preventive measures to enhance the safety of workers?
■Glossary
unemployment (n) 失業
involuntarily (adv) 不自願地
surprisingly (adv) 出人意料地
preventive (adj) 預防的
[Smarties' Power English 第292期]