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Letters

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The World Economic Forum website recently published an article by KU Leuven professor Galen Watts, who attributes the “Great Resignation” in the West to an awakening of the wish to pursue a passion-driven job, following the disruption of our work routine during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This phenomenon has much do with one’s work values. There are many reasons people choose to work. Some work because they are breadwinners who need to make ends meet, some work to fulfil parental or social expectations and some choose to devote time to upholding social justice.
It is unlikely for those in the first two categories to quit their job for reasons other than higher pay or social status. But once they begin to consider the meaning of work, they will explore new directions.
The fusion of East and West is deeply rooted in Hong Kong culture. The Confucian emphasis on diligence and perseverance helps explain the city’s “Lion Rock spirit” that enabled the economic miracles of the 1970s and 1980s. This mindset continues to have great influence on middle-aged employees in Hong Kong.
By contrast, many millennials and younger people have more individualistic ideals and do not mind the slashie lifestyle. Regardless of the mentality, while young people advocate work-life balance and personal well-being, Hong Kong workers keep some of the longest working hours in the world.
What is ‘lying flat’, and why are Chinese officials standing up to it?
The chance of having a Great Resignation in Hong Kong any time soon is slim, mainly because employees are too busy to question the meaning of life and work. Working from home does not give people more breathing space.
The passion paradigm is premised on economic security. Only after we have become financially sound can we afford to be romantic.
Work values are slowly changing, though, amid a reduction in family size. There should be a social awakening on this or we will collectively bear the cost of an abundance of unfilled job vacancies and deep-seated social problems.
John Ng, Lai Chi Kok
Humanity needs resilience to survive
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is appalling, and the ripples it is sending through the energy, banking and commodity sectors are worrisome.
Somehow we have built a global civilisation that is so complex, tangled and fragile that tugging on any one thread can potentially unravel everything. Whether it is a war, pandemic, supply chain crunch or climate change-induced weather, we seem to be stumbling from one hazard to the next.
During the rest of this century, our global population is expected to increase by another 2 billion to 3 billion people. If we want humans to be around for the next several millennia, we need to start thinking about resilience rather than efficiency.
Kent Goodwin, British Columbia, Canada


Why Hong Kong uses bamboo scaffolding, and meet the spider-men who climb it: a visual explainer

Antidote to Covid-19 pandemic’s Great Resignation could be found in ‘spirit-preneurship’

Demand from Chinese company to check employee phone battery power sparks privacy debate

Hectic work culture means Hong Kong ‘Great Resignation’ is unlikely

Chinese work culture

An SF Express delivery staffer moving an order at Nan Fung Plaza in Tseung Kwan O on March 4. Photo: Dickson Lee

Coronavirus: ‘over 80 per cent of Hong Kong’s cross-border truck drivers could be out of a job’ as Shenzhen tightens restrictions

Cross-border truck drivers at the Man Kam To checkpoint on Monday. Photo: Sam Tsang

Residents queue to undergo nucleic acid tests for Covid-19 in Shenzhen on Monday. Photo: AFP

Cathay Pacific’s ‘great resignation’ rolls on as Hong Kong’s strict Covid-19 restrictions take a mental toll on pilots

The resignations at Cathay Pacific have affected those still at work. Photo: May Tse

Cathay Pacific introduced bonuses this month to encourage more pilots to take on the “closed-loop” arrangement. Photo: Winson Wong

Cathay is using the pandemic to reassess its operations, including the costs of employing expatriate pilots, according to analyst Shukor Yusof. Photo: May Tse

Workers on life in India’s post-Covid, post-Great Resignation, gig economy: ‘Like I’m working all the time’

Delivery riders for Zomato and Swiggy wait to collect orders outside a restaurant in Mumbai, India. Photo: Bloomberg

Jia Haldar. Photo: Handout

Diptendu Haldar. Photo: Handout

Charmaine Kenita. Photo: Handout

Ankit Mohan. Photo: Handout

Srinivas. Photo: Handout

In 2022, Hong Kong must fight pandemic-induced resignation with a dose of childlike wonder

Children enjoy being drenched by sprinkler at the Velodrome Park in Tseung Kwan O in May. Photo: May Tse

A person walks past a sign advertising job openings in a retail store in New York in October. The US saw a huge number of workers resigning from their jobs this year. Photo: EPA-EFE

Opinion


Readers discuss the differences in work values between generations in Hong Kong and the ripple effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine



Readers discuss the differences in work values between generations in Hong Kong and the global ripple effects emanating from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.


Jobs

Ukraine war

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Readers discuss the differences in work values between generations in Hong Kong and the ripple effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Readers discuss the differences in work values between generations in Hong Kong and the ripple effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine