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The Internship Programme for University Graduates (GIP), which was aimed at equipping university graduates with the qualities, experience and exposure needed for their personal and career development, demonstrated the Government's commitment to and investment in manpower development, the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, said today (June 25).
Speaking at the GIP briefing session, Mr Cheung highlighted that the GIP provided valuable learning and development opportunities for graduates who wanted to build their careers in Hong Kong, in the Greater China region or even internationally.
"We are pleased to note the enthusiastic response from different quarters since the GIP started accepting internship offers from enterprises and organisations on June 10. I am impressed by the commitment and dedication of the participating employers to nurturing talent for the long-term benefits of Hong Kong.
"I have to thank all local and Mainland enterprises and organisations for their support and hope that more employers can join the scheme," Mr Cheung said.
Commissioner for Labour Mrs Cherry Tse said at the briefing session that, "the 12 participating tertiary institutions and the Labour Department had started receiving internship vacancies. The average monthly salary of vacancies received so far is close to $9,000, with 80% of them offering monthly salary above $8,000. The highest offer is $12,000."
"Apart from some Hong Kong, Chinese and overseas enterprises which have expressed interest in recruiting university graduates as Mainland interns, the Hong Kong Chinese Enterprises Association has been playing a pivotal role in launching the GIP. Among other support, the association has mobilised its member companies with different backgrounds including banking, construction, real estate, hotel and tourism, to offer a significant number of training positions for the GIP."
"These internship offers provide our young people with valuable opportunities to learn and experience the way of life on the Mainland, as well as enhance their understanding of the operation of state-owned and Mainland enterprises. The experience is no doubt of tremendous value to their future career development in the Greater China region," Mrs Tse said.
Enterprises and organisations interested in offering internship vacancies to any of the 12 participating tertiary institutions may complete and return the relevant forms directly to the institutions concerned. For those enterprises and organisations interested in providing internship opportunities to Hong Kong residents who have graduated from universities outside the territory, they may submit their completed forms to the GIP Office of the Labour Department.
Mrs Tse said all participating enterprises and organisations should undertake that they would not displace their existing employees with the interns engaged. The 12 participating tertiary institutions and the Labour Department would carefully examine the internship positions offered, with particular reference to the job nature, training contents, potential benefits to the graduates and remuneration packages, before deciding whether to accept the offers under the GIP.
At the briefing session, representatives from Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, EGL Tours, Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited, MTR Corporation Limited and Pfizer Corporation Hong Kong Ltd introduced the training contents, employment terms and development opportunities of the internship positions they intended to offer under the GIP.
The Hong Kong Chinese Enterprises Association together with representatives from the Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, China Merchants Group Ltd, China Life Insurance (Overseas) Company Ltd and the China Overseas Holdings Ltd also shared the salient features of the prospective Mainland internship opportunities. These internship positions would help university graduates broaden their horizons and enhance their understanding of the structure and operation of Mainland enterprises.
Representatives from the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong and the City University of Hong Kong spoke on behalf of the participating tertiary institutions about their placement and support services for graduates and enterprises under the GIP.
Ends/Thursday, June 25, 2009
Issued at HKT 15:31
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