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Foreign domestic helpers who break their employment contracts without valid reasons to join a government pilot program for imported elderly caregivers face being barred from future employment in Hong Kong, Secretary for Labor and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han warned on Monday.
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The warning followed concerns raised by lawmakers during a Legislative Council Panel on Welfare Services meeting over the quality of overseas training under the program.
Legislators questioned whether the initiative could incentivize domestic helpers already working in Hong Kong to job-hop in pursuit of higher wages or incur additional debt before departing the city.
In response, Sun stated that the administration is vetting accredited institutions in the workers' home countries to administer training and conduct rigorous assessments. Candidates must complete a minimum of 150 hours of training before traveling to Hong Kong.
He added that local foreign domestic helpers who quit without valid reason could be blacklisted.
The government formed a working group last year to compile the Report on Ageing Society Strategies, released last month. The report outlines 73 measures across 11 areas to prepare for demographic change.
Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration Warner Cheuk Wing-hing, who led the group, said the measures span healthcare, technology, the economy, elderly care and urban planning.
They form a coordinated strategy to address the projected growth of Hong Kong’s elderly population, which is expected to reach 2.74 million—more than one-third of the total population—by 2046.
