Assignment task: The following is an extract from the government responding to the question of labour shortage raised by a Legal member on 6 July 2022:
In the face of ageing population and declining birth rate, the local workforce is expected to shrink. The Government will continue to promote training and retraining, provide appropriate employment services, optimize child care services, etc. to unleash the potential local workforce. To assist people to enhance their skills for adapting to the new economy and trades, the Government will increase the subsidy ceiling of the Continuing Education Fund (CEF) to $25,000 per person and remove the upper age limit for CEF applicants. With a view to enhancing the employability of local employees, the Employees Retraining Board also offers over 700 regular courses, covering 28 industries and various generic skills.
The Hong Kong Retail Management Association (HKRMA), founded in 1983 as the leading retail association with membership covering more than 9,000 retail outlets, has been receiving feedback from members about the difficulty in recruiting employees and they are seeking assistance.
Assume that you are an HR consultant of the HKRMA, who is being asked by the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau of the Hong Kong Government to collect data and submit a report exploring the above issues. Attempt the following questions.
Problem 1: Discuss TWO challenges to the retail industry in the context of Hong Kong.
Problem 2: Based on the identified challenges, suggest TWO required workforce competencies and behaviors that can help retail firms in Hong Kong tackle the challenges identified in Question 1.
Justify your answers.