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| Past Events: Bay Area Experience: Evidence-based Policy Webinar Series |
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Education and Labor Market Outcomes in Hong Kong and Guangdong
29 April 2022 | 11:00–12:15 (UTC+8) | Zoom |
Speaker
Prof. Dongshu Ou
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Associate Professor, Department of Educational Administration and Policy, CUHK
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Discussants
Prof. Stephen W. K. Chiu
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Chair Professor of Sociology, Department of Social Sciences,
The Education University of Hong Kong
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Prof. Chen Li
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Associate Professor, Centre for China Studies, CUHK
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Moderator
Prof. Fanny M. Cheung
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Senior Advisor, Faculty of Social Science and HKIAPS, CUHK
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Policy Research @ HKIAPS presented a webinar on “Education and Labour Market Outcomes in Hong Kong and Guangdong” on 29 April 2022. The main speaker, Prof. Dongshu Ou, presented her latest research on the educational mismatch experienced by male workers in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), which is part of a larger research initiative on the Greater Bay Area involving researchers at CUHK and Brown University. The two discussants, Prof. Stephen W. K. Chiu and Prof. Chen Li, shared their thoughts on education in the GBA.
In Prof. Ou’s study, educational mismatch is defined as the difference between the level of education that an individual has attained and the level of skill required for a specific job. The difference represents a manifestation of undereducation or overeducation, which means that there is inefficiency in the use of public resources in society. An educational mismatch will lead to lower job satisfaction and higher job turnover. The research team used the realized matches (RM) method to measure incidences of educational mismatch, and compared natives and immigrants in Hong Kong and Guangdong province in relation to overeducation and undereducation. The results were compared with findings from cities worldwide.
The RM method uses the distribution of the education levels of workers in each occupation to infer the level of education required for that job. This analysis uses the mean or mode of the education level of the labour force engaged in this occupation in the local labour market. When an individual’s level of education deviates from the mean/mode to a certain extent (e.g., more than one standard deviation), an educational mismatch can be identified.
The research team found that although an educational mismatch exists in Hong Kong, it is relatively minor compared to the situation in other regions or countries. The difference between natives and immigrants in the educational mismatch is also diminishing over time. The results indicate that overeducation is prevalent among mainlander immigrants with associate degrees. However, the wage premium for those who are overeducated is minimal.
On the other hand, overeducation in Guangdong is notably higher among migrants from other provinces than among natives. The returns from having the required education are very high. The wage penalty for undereducation and the wage premium for overeducation is high as well.
Based on these findings, Prof. Ou’s team recommended that efforts be made to facilitate the recognition of diplomas and certificates obtained by migrant workers, as well as to match the supply of educated migrants with the demand from the labour market.
Prof. Chiu shared his observations on the incidence of overeducation in Hong Kong, as well as on the relationship between the perceived heterogeneity of qualifications and the difference in the returns from education.
Prof. Li proposed another angle to predict educational mismatch in the GBA. It is possible that a change in the economic and industrial structure of a country or a city may lead to high expectations about the returns from education, and to keen competition in society, both of which could potentially be associated with mobility in the labour market.
A total of 57 local and regional participants attended the webinar.
Video
Article:
For Migrant Workers in Guangdong and Hong Kong Many are Over-qualified for Their Jobs (in Chinese) 
Organizer
Policy Research @ HKIAPS, CUHK
Co-sponsor
Global China Research Programme, CUHK
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