Jobs hub makes the grade for civil service

A recruitment center set up by the Civil Service Bureau had to cope with more than 16,000 job applications to be clerical officers and secretaries within three months after it was set up in October.

Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan said on Facebook yesterday that the recruitment center, general grades office, received more than 7,000 assistant clerical officer, 5,000 clerical assistant and 4,000 personal secretary II job applications.

"We have been making orderly arrangements for applicants to undergo skill tests and selection interviews at the recruitment center, with the target of issuing the first batch of appointment letters next month," Yeung said.

She said the center would strengthen year-round recruitment publicity to attract more applications for the posts of clerical and secretarial grades.

The center will participate in the four-day Education and Careers Expo held by Trade and Development Council starting January 25, to acquaint people with work that clerical and secretarial grade officers have to cope with.

The center will also hold three to four seminars this year targeting secondary school students to acquaint them with the organization of government and civil service to facilitate those who wish to pursue a career in public service in early career planning.

The recruitment center at Wan Chai commenced operations on October 6, providing one-stop, job application processing for the posts of assistant clerical officer, clerical assistant and personal secretary II, so as to speed up the recruitment process and enable applicants to know the results as soon as possible.

Applicants interested in the three positions can obtain recruitment information at the center and submit applications on the spot. Depending on operational needs and the number of candidates, the bureau planned to recruit about 2,000 new appointees in October 2023 to join the clerical and secretarial grades in the coming year.

A month before that, the administration announced that it planned to recruit 50 administrative officers, 220 executive officers, 10 assistant labor officers and 15 transport officers.

The jobs are open to applications by all permanent residents, and students pursuing a bachelor's degree and graduating next year or in 2025 can also apply.

They have to pass Basic Law and national security law tests first.