Construction companies have set up a special youth group to attract new university graduates in an effort to combat a continuing brain drain.
The Hong Kong Construction Association's young-member society has recruited about 1,000 students in civil engineering, real estate construction and surveying from five universities since September.
'It's difficult to get young people into the trade these days,' the chairman of the new arm, Derrick Pang Yat-bond, said. 'Many civil engineering graduates among us end up going to work in finance. Even students doing the subject often misunderstand our work and think it is about labouring on construction sites.'
Pang, who is also deputy chairman of Chun Wo Development Holdings, said an engineer managing a construction project not only had to supervise the work, but communicate effectively with workers and technical specialists.
His group aimed to let young professionals get to know students on campus and share their work experience. Firm visits, site visits and overseas trips would be organised. Pang said the society would arrange for a third to half of the 1,000 recruits to serve internships with some of the association's 320 member companies.
He expected the industry would continue to provide job opportunities over the next 10 years because 10 major infrastructure projects, including MTR spur lines, were in full swing. Tunnel and marine work were two areas with great demand, he said.