Working mums who struggle to make ends meet now - let alone in old age

Cheung Yin-foon is a typical working-class mother. The 52-year-old returned to work as a cleaner about 12 years ago when her two children started school.

"I would've liked to stay at home for longer until they were older, but alas it wasn't possible," Cheung says as she irons a freshly laundered shirt for one of the families she works for. "We needed the money … my husband doesn't earn much and we needed more for the kids' education."

Her story is shared by many other women in the city and beyond, whose lives are in the spotlight as the world marks International Women's Day today.

Cheung still works hard in her 50s, and she and her husband have few plans for retirement. When the city's elderly population peaks in about 2040, it will be people like Cheung - then in their 70s or 80s - who will be most at risk of sliding back into poverty.

"A lot of women who work as cleaners are like me," she says. "The money I earn - that's it. There is no insurance, no safety net. That money covers medical bills, retirement … everything."

She charges HK$90 to HK$110 per hour. Her husband and daughter add to the family's income with logistics work, taking it to about HK$20,000 a month.

Cheung says life is much better than it was 10 years ago, when she had to "break her back and do as much as possible" as cash was so tight. But they give little thought to retirement - they simply don't have enough savings.