Do people actually work contract in HK?

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  1. #1

    Do people actually work contract in HK?

    I've been working in mid to senior management level recruitment in Hong Kong for 3 years now and before that worked in London for 6 years and I am still trying to understand about contracting in Hong Kong/ Asia. The market conditions are very pro-contract but there just doesn't seem to be that many real jobs there.
    I'd be very interested in hearing about peoples experience in contracting here in Asia, do you work direct or go through recruitment companies? Do you have to fill in timesheets etc? Do you set yourself up as a "Limited Company" Are you actually better off working as a contractor?
    I understand that IT is high in contracting, but what about other industries?
    Also, if you're an expat, how about the VISA issue?
    It's assumed that it's more a "cultural" issue why there isn't much contracting here, but surely that can't just be it.
    Any opinions out there?

    Thanks everyone.


  2. #2

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    In my experience in Asia freelancing, contracting, consulting etc are the same as 'temps' and not looked upon highly at all. If you are good enough you are employed full time. If you are not good enough you are not employed.
    Some people that are very experienced, can get work with bosses that are 'western' in style or business method but since you can get someone full time for a reasonable wage why bother taking on a 'temp' especially where the concept of loyalty is so important and nobody trusts people who go from company to company in the same industry.


  3. #3

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    My husband contracts with my company. But we are entirely "western" in outlook so probably not a good example. He has not bothered to set up a company or anything.


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    I do some retainer work but I have to be very careful about possible conflicts.


  5. #5

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    What a load of rubbish, contractors/consultants are looked at as experts in their field and are paid higher rates accordingly. If you're good enough you're a contrator not a full time employee, as seeking work in your field is largely by reputation and contacts. This is especially true in my field financial IT. Contractors often go company to company using their knowledge to implement systems, it's this diverse experience which makes them more effective in project roles as opposed to full time employees.

    However, the market in HK is very different from the US/UK and contracts are not as easily available as full time positions. I think you'll struggle locally, I've colleagues who came out as contractors and are here full time but they were employed by the UK side of the business to do the job here. That took care of the visa issue as they were sponsored

    Last edited by hongers; 01-12-2009 at 12:41 PM.

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    So your post contradicts itself and because you are referring to your specific industry everyone else's comments are rubbish are they?


  7. #7

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    Where's the contradiction? Merely highlighting that contractors/consultants are usually seen as experts in their field with reference, although not limited to, the industry I work in. 'Temps' is a very different type of employment.

    However, the HK market is largely driven by full time employment and although conditions for contracting here appear to be ripe, it's very different from the UK and US.


  8. #8

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    So why are you starting off 'What a load of rubbish..' when the question isn't 'are contractors worth their weight in pie?' but 'Why aren't contractors popular in the 852?' The point is I think - they aren't trusted. Frankly having been in a company that loved consultants to the point it became a total abortion I can in part agree with that view though I do think HK companies (never mind mainland ones) would certainly benefit from taking on board some experts in management. But - that would then mean the whole 'family / trusted relations' model that is used in Asia generally would be brought into question.


  9. #9

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    There are 2 scenarios.

    One is the only reason company hire contractors in HK is to cut cost, it's simpler to hire someone on contract basis as you can limit a cost to a very high degree resulting in huge cost savings, this can range anywhere from no paid benefits required after years of service, no medical, no paid or very limited annual leave, not even sure if sick leave even applies.. I see a lot of local companies apply this practice as their main concern is "cost effective", something like "squeeze blood out of a rock"...

    The second is companies (some of MNC applies) just want to outsource for the sake of simplicity and even cut some cost, this usually applies with paid leave, medical, etc... directly thru the outsource partner.. example is Bank 1 hires Fujitsu for example to handle their help desk volume, they pay Fujitsu a large sum of cash and audit their task, anyone hired is actually working for/paid by and all human resource related task is handled by fujitsu, just that all their work is within Bank 1. This is just an example....

    Well as you all already know, some companies abuse this tactic with a iron stick, ie: *cough* pc *cough*..... outsource, cut cost, then the contractor outsource again to another sub contractor.. and the people below.... are literally slaves... and they wonder why their turn over ratio is high...


  10. #10

    Thanks to you all for your views and insights. It does seem that contracting in Asia is very industry specific, especially in the IT side, I guess this might be because if the unique skill sets required and maybe the nature of the work (not an expert here, but I'm assuming there's quite allot of project based work). It would be interesting to see if there are other industries that are "pro-contract" in HK/ Asia. It seems that more banks and finance organisations are looking for contractors. Do they recruit direct or through a recruitment company? It's so different here to the UK, I've noticed tradition is sometimes more important than actual cost and efficieny sometimes.

    Also in the UK, there are tax breaks for going Ltd company, but I don't think they would apply here as it's lower tax anyway (that's my assumption anyway).

    It's an interesting case that just because the market shows pro-contract, there are still allot of forces in Asia that seem to prevent it's take off. I think the next year might be interesting.

    Any other thoughts/ observations/ opinions are welcome/ appreciated.

    Thanks.


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