Migrant workers in a global city: the case of contemporary Hong Kong

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-26
Author(s):  
Yingtong Lai ◽  
Aijia Li
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Global City ◽  
Power Relationship ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
City Literature

Purpose Previous research has documented the ways that migration contributed to the rise of Hong Kong as a global city by the early 1990s. Much academic attention has been paid to the causes of labor migration and issues related to the adaptation of migrant workers in Hong Kong. Based on a review of such studies, the purpose of this paper is to describe three representative groups of migrant workers in Hong Kong and discuss how research on migrant workers in Hong Kong has provided new insights to the global city literature and to the study of development and migration. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews published works regarding migrant workers in Hong Kong since 1996. Discussion focuses on three representative groups: high-skilled immigrants from developed countries, low-skilled migrant workers from less developed regions and mainland Chinese immigrants. Findings Findings suggest that the migration patterns and challenges of the adaptation of migrant workers in Hong Kong correspond largely to the social polarization thesis proposed by global city literature. However, Hong Kong is unique compared to core global cities in the USA and Western Europe due to its special power relationship with mainland China and its colonial history, which have a significant impact on immigrants’ decision to migrate and their post-migration integration. Originality/value This review paper provides a better understanding of migration and development, and highlights new factors that contribute to reasons for migration and challenges of integration for migrant workers in the host society.

Hong Kong unrest runs serious risk of escalation

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Property ◽  
Chinese Military ◽  
Serious Injuries ◽  
First Time ◽  
The City

Significance The strike is a major escalation of the months-long anti-government protest movement, causing serious economic disruption for the first time and setting a precedent. The government’s suspension of a controversial bill allowing extradition to mainland China has failed to satisfy activists and a significant section of the public. Police today continue to clash with protesters in several locations around the city, resulting in arrests, serious injuries and destruction of public property. Impacts Use of mainland Chinese military riot police is now realistic. The longer protests continue, the more opportunities there are for miscalculation or radical tactics on both sides that deepen animosities. Limited mainland intervention as a last resort still seems more likely than a risky attempt to intimidate using overwhelming force.

Anti-mainland feeling fuels Hong Kong radical groups

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Political Autonomy ◽  
Legislative Council ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Visitor Numbers

Significance The violence was the worst Hong Kong has witnessed since protesters clashed with police during the 2014 'Umbrella Protests' which demanded greater political autonomy from mainland China. Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, Hong Kong's top political official, swiftly denounced the violent attacks on police officers and journalists and vowed to prosecute instigators. Impacts Local outbreaks of violent protesting will have little impact on tourism or international business in the short term. Public anger will prompt the chief executive's administration to distance itself from mainland Chinese authorities. China will support some measures that lessen Hong Kong anger over the impact of Chinese tourism, such as further curbs on visitor numbers. Pro-localisation forces will seek greater representation in the Legislative Council elections slated for September 2016.

Push and pull factors influencing Mainland Chinese MEd students in Hong Kong

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 1539-1560 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Cheung ◽  
Xin Guo ◽  
Xiaorui Wang ◽  
Zhuang Miao
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Research Team ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Host Countries ◽  
Personal Network ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the key factors affecting Mainland Chinese students pursuing a Master of Education degree in Hong Kong on their study abroad decision and return intentions. Design/methodology/approach The current study employed a mixed-methods approach to investigate factors that affect Mainland Chinese students pursuing MEd degrees in Hong Kong. Participants were first invited to fill out a questionnaire. After collecting and analyzing the survey data, in-depth interviews with a selected group of students were carried out by the research team to obtain useful qualitative data to triangulate the survey findings. A purposeful and convenience sampling method, carried out through the personal network of the research team, was used to recruit MEd Mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong to participate in the current study. Findings The findings provided compelling evidence that Hong Kong was an attractive study destination to this particular group of MEd Chinese students. The findings also indicated that academic factors were more important than social, cultural and economic factors when it came to choosing their study destination. In contrast to previous studies, participants expressed a much stronger desire to return home upon graduation. The three most influential predictors of their decision to return were the lack of a Hong Kong teaching certificate (r=+0.36), the opportunity to contribute to their hometown (r=+0.31) and the inclination to be closer to family and friends (r=+0.20). Originality/value While a number of studies have been carried out to study why Mainland Chinese students chose Hong Kong as their study destination to pursue their teacher training degree, none of these studies focused exclusively on fee-paying MEd Chinese students. Hong Kong is facing keen competition from both traditional host countries and emerging host countries to recruit students from Mainland China. It is therefore crucial to understand the needs of these Mainland Chinese students in a competitive, globalized, tertiary education market, as the satisfaction of students, in the form of positive discussion among alumni, promotes a university’s reputation and sustains its advantage in attracting students.

Urbanism as a political way of life: the case of highly educated mainlanders in Hong Kong

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Iam Chong Ip
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
Urban Experience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Highly Educated ◽  
Classic Essay

Purpose The disengaged form of urban experience, addressed by Louis Wirth in his classic essay, is worthy of further theorization and contextualization. The themes such as indifference, alienation, and disengagement, once the focus of early urban theorists, remain underdeveloped in contemporary China. Through the case study of gangpiao (“Hong Kong drifters”), the highly educated youth from mainland China to Hong Kong, this paper aims to offer an apt and logical illustration of how a disengaged form of urban experience is contingently made. Design/methodology/approach Between 2017 and 2020, the author and his assistants interviewed 50 mainland Chinese youth, aged between 25 and 35, in Hong Kong and explored how they perceive, conceive and relate themselves to the city. Findings Most informants, instead of devoting themselves to the local community life, embrace a way of life characterized by impersonal, superficial and transitory contacts. The author argues that their feeling of estrangement and indifference, rather than a “natural” outcome of economic progress, is an ethos primarily nurtured by China’s governing strategy and tactics of segregation. The transnational space of gangpiao is a part of the process of reproduction of the Chinese state across territories. Originality/value Except for a very limited number of studies, most scholars and critics barely examine the responsibilities of non-state actors for the dominant project of urbanism. The themes such as indifference, alienation and disengagement, once the focus of early urban theorists, remain underdeveloped in the new era of Chinese urban culture. In other words, more scholarly attention should be paid to the circumstances under which people disregard local differences and envision and embrace a “generic” form of city and way of urban life.

The many faces of suzhi in the Chinese organization and society

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Upton-McLaughlin
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Culture ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Foreign Companies ◽  
Expatriate Managers ◽  
The Many ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper was to explore the Chinese concept of suzhi and how it relates to behavioral standards within mainland Chinese society and the workplace. The article provides a general discussion of suzhi and its inherent elements to act as a foundation for the education of expatriate managers and executives and for future research by Chinese human resource management (HRM) scholars. Design/methodology/approach – This paper draws on the author's first-hand experience and observations from five years of living and working abroad in mainland China with Chinese companies and executives. Findings – The concept of suzhi in China is a reflection of multiple behavioral standards throughout China. And while suzhi's roots are in ancient Chinese culture and Confucianism, it is also subject to influence and change. Practical implications – The paper may serve as a foundation both for expatriate managers seeking to improve HRM practices in foreign companies in China and future scholars who wish to conduct further research on suzhi and Chinese behavioral standards as they can be applied to the workplace. Originality/value – This is an attempt to enlighten expatriate managers and executives in China on the concept of suzhi and its implication for HRM in China.

The information ethics perception gaps between Chinese and American students

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 473-502 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Ling-hsing Chang ◽  
Jim Q. Chen
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Chinese Culture ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Information Ethics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Espoused Theory ◽  
American Students ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the impact of Chinese culture on the information ethics perception gaps between Chinese and American students. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative approach, this study utilizes Kohlberg’s Cognitive Moral Development model and an open-ended questionnaire to measure and analyze the gaps among information ethics perceptions of students from Taiwan, Mainland China, Hong Kong, and the USA, and to assess the extent to which the gaps are influenced by Chinese culture. Findings Students’ perceptions of intellectual property, information accuracy, privacy, and accessibility (PAPA) are deeply influenced by national culture. Sub-cultures have significant impact on the perceptions. Political systems, history, and legal environment may also play a role in the differences of PAPA perceptions among the three Chinese societies. The study also revealed that accuracy and intellectual property are the most deficient areas of moral developments in both Chinese and American samples. Research limitations/implications The sample sizes from Hong Kong and the USA were relatively small due to resource and time constraints. In addition, the subjects from Hong Kong and the USA were a little bit older than the subjects from Taiwan and Mainland China due to the fact that universities in HK and USA tend to have more non-traditional students than in universities in Mainland China and Taiwan. Second, the questionnaire is a limited means of studying moral reasoning because the results are likely to reflect espoused theory rather than theory-in-use. Practical implications The educational implication of this study calls for a renewed approach to educate students on the importance of information ethics for the sake of sustained economic development. Originality/value The novelty of this research lies in its interpretation of students’ PAPA perceptions and fresh insights from a Chinese guanxi perspective.

scholarly journals Investigating the spatiotemporal variation of fish choruses to help identify important foraging habitat for Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins, Sousa chinensis

2017 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 510-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew K Pine ◽  
Ding Wang ◽  
Lindsay Porter ◽  
Kexiong Wang
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Spatiotemporal Variability ◽  
Marine Spatial Planning ◽  
Separate Species ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Chinese Waters ◽  
New Information ◽  
Hong Kong Waters

Abstract Given the common physical overlapping between coastal developments and important marine mammal habitats, there is a need to identify potentially important foraging grounds for dolphins when informing marine spatial planning and management of underwater noise. Hydrophones were deployed at four locations either side of the mainland China–Hong Kong Special Administrative Region border to monitor the presence of soniferous fishes; a key prey item for Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins. Five distinct chorus-types were identified; each showing spatiotemporal variability. Each chorus-type was assumed to represent a separate species. Chorus-type diversity also differed between sites, with SP4 and SP5 types only being detected within Hong Kong waters where bottom trawling is illegal. Chorus-type SP1 was only detected at the recording sites in mainland Chinese waters. Call rates and chorus duration were highest during the spring and summer months. Given these dolphins show a predator-prey relationship, these data provide new information on the local fish communities at a much finer-scale than fish landing records and a baseline of fish activity in an environment that is challenging to explore. Overlaid with acoustic detections of foraging dolphins, these data form a basis for identifying potentially important foraging habitats that should be afforded the highest priority for protection.

Risk assessment in public-private partnership infrastructure projects

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Osei-Kyei ◽  
Albert P.C. Chan
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Hong Kong ◽  
Significant Risk ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Public Private Partnership ◽  
Cost Overruns ◽  
Private Partnership ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Project Completion ◽  
Rate Fluctuation

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically compare the risk factors in public-private partnership (PPP) projects in developing and developed countries, represented by Ghana and Hong Kong, respectively. Design/methodology/approach A structured questionnaire survey was conducted with PPP practitioners in Ghana and Hong Kong. In total, 103 valid responses were received for analysis. Kendall’s coefficient of concordance and mean ranking were used for data analysis. Findings The results show that respondents from Ghana ranked country risk factors higher, whereas their Hong Kong counterparts ranked project-specific risks higher. The top five significant risks in Ghana are corruption, inflation rate fluctuation, exchange rate fluctuation, delay in project completion and interest rate fluctuation. In Hong Kong, the top five significant risk factors are delay in land acquisition, operational cost overruns, construction cost overruns, delay in project completion and political interference. Originality/value The results of the study inform international investors of the appropriate risk mitigation measures and preventive actions to use when engaging in PPP arrangements in any part of the world. Further, governments who are yet to use the PPP concept would be informed of the prevailing risk factors in other neighbouring countries (i.e. developing or developed countries).

Conceptualizations of sociopolitical culture in Hong Kong and Mainland China

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-233
Author(s):  
Ray C. H. Leung
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Analytical Techniques ◽  
The United States ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Media Discourse ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Occupy Central ◽  
Cultural Linguistics

Abstract This study of media discourse focuses on how the sociopolitical culture in Hong Kong and Mainland China is conceptualized by the English-speaking press. To this end, the present research studies newspaper articles on the Hong Kong Occupy Central Movement published in Britain, the United States, and Australia. Cultural Linguistics, combined with corpus analytical techniques, is used to examine the construals of hong kong and mainland china. A 303,455-word corpus which contains 402 articles was compiled for data analysis. It is found that the disagreement between the Hong Kong civilians and the Mainland Chinese government is often reported with metonymical conceptualizations (place for inhabitants versus place for the institution). In general, the sociopolitical culture in Hong Kong and Mainland China is imbued with negative emotions, disharmony, and power differences, as is evident from the body, illness, disease, container, and possession conceptualizations. At the end of this paper, issues about researching conceptualizations in newspaper texts, such as the journalistic input, are discussed.

scholarly journals Complaints on abortuses handling: policy recommendations for Hong Kong

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-81
Author(s):  
Celine S.M. Cheng ◽  
Amanda P.Y. Lau
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Ethical Concern ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Hong Kong Sar ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Clinical Wastes

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review cases about complaints of abortuses handling in Hong Kong, and to further propose policy recommendations to help comfort parents with respect and dignity toward abortuses. Design/methodology/approach There is a systematic review of articles/newspapers related to the practice and regulation of abortuses handling in Hong Kong and overseas countries. Also, point of views among stakeholders are selected from: newspapers, patients’ groups, Hong Kong SAR Government’s websites, radio programmes’ interviews, related organizations’ websites, blogs from legislative councilors and lawyers. Findings Since parents suffered from miscarriage before 24 weeks’ pregnancy are increasingly willing to share their experiences and struggled for arranging a legal funeral for their children, Hong Kong SAR Government is able to understand these parents’ needs and hence set up more “Angel Garden” in both the public and the private cemeteries. Yet, the provision of funeral and cremation services are still not comprehensive. Existing measures from Mainland China and overseas countries to handle abortuses and to provide support for parents are analyzed. More critically, ethical concern on handling abortuses as one of the clinical wastes is further included in the discussion. Originality/value Although all less than 24 weeks’ fetuses cannot be given any Certificate of Stillbirth, respect and dignity can still be presented toward their parents by flexible regulation. After discussing the related measures on handling abortuses from other countries, some of their humane regulations are feasible to be applied to Hong Kong.

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