Working for British Consulate General Hong Kong

General information

The British Consulate General is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from any qualified candidates to fill our current job vacancies.

Fair competition is at the centre of recruitment at the British Consulate-General Hong Kong. This is why we do not maintain a database of potential candidates, cannot accept applications on a speculative basis and are unable to hold CVs on file to be considered for future vacancies.

Civil Services Competences and the selection process

Selection is based on the overall suitability of the candidate against the skills, qualifications and competences required in the position, as may be demonstrated by applicants through the application form and the interview.

We recommend that all applicants understand the Civil Service competences before applying for any role and in preparation for interviews.

Selection process

  • selection will always be by interview, normally with three people on the interview panel (the hiring manager or section specialist, the HR officer and one other). Applicants should be prepared to be tested during the selection process on their level of required language (written and/or oral) and any other specialist skills (e.g. IT packages) listed within the job specification. Good English language skills in all except the most junior grades, is a requirement
  • references will be checked and candidates will be expected to demonstrate by production of a certificate that they hold all the job specification required qualifications
  • for some jobs, applicants should be prepared to attend a medical examination (at BCG cost) if required before and at any time during employment if there might be a safety concern
  • all full-time vacancies, unless otherwise stated, will be considered as open to ‘job share’, dependent on quality and suitability of applications from job share partners/pairs

What is ‘job-share’?

Job sharing is where [normally] two jobholders share responsibility and split a job between them.

There are no hard and fast rules other than the split in hours must be agreed between the job share partners and line management. HR also need to agree with regards to adjustments to the position, any local labour law issues with regards to hours worked per week, and salary/related payments.

The most popular job share arrangements are:

  • split week - one works first half of the week while the other works the second (any overlap must be agreed with the budget holder)
  • split day - one works each morning while the other works each afternoon
  • alternate week - one works one week while the other works the next (weeks can be Monday to Friday or, e.g. Wednesday to Tuesday)
  • alternate two and three-day weeks - one works two days one week and three days the next, while the other works three days and two days the next

Leave, salary and any other benefits are split on a pro-rata basis according to the ratio of working hours compared to a full-time position.

People applying for positions who wish to be considered for job share should either make this clear within their application (stating clearly whether their application is only for a job share, or whether their application is for the full time job but they would also consider making up a job share position if another suitable partner was available). Alternatively, applicants can apply as a job share partnership but applicants would go through the selection process independently.

Current work opportunities

If you are interested in a job opportunity at the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong or one of the other UK delegations, DBT office or other government departments in Hong Kong, please visit the FCDO Country Based Staff vacancies website.

To filter the search for current vacancies, use the “Country/Territory” field on the left of the page and select the country you wish to search.

The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer. We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability.

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow.

Staff recruited locally are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law.

Terms and conditions of employment for Country Based Staff

The following is a basic guide to the principal terms and conditions of employment applicable to Country Based Staff. Any questions applicants called to interview might have about the terms & conditions of service can be asked towards the end of the interview.

Eligibility

  • applicants must have residence status in Hong Kong or must be a HK Consular Corps ID holder, allowing employment in Hong Kong
  • all full-time vacancies, unless otherwise stated, will be considered as open to ‘job share’, dependent on quality and suitability of applications from job share partners/pairs
  • some job positions are limited to certain nationalities owing to strict UK Government security clearance criteria. This will be clearly detailed in the job specification if this is a consideration

Period of Probation

  • six months for C(5) - S1 positions. Probation will not be confirmed until satisfactory performance has been demonstrated, references and declared qualifications have been received/checked, and health/security clearance (where appropriate) confirmed. New staff judged not to be performing to the required level might have their probation period extended and/or might not have their position confirmed

Working Hours

  • the standard full time working hours for all staff (except Drivers) is 41 hours gross (inc. one hour lunch breaks) per week, normally 8:30am to 4:45pm on Mondays to Thursdays and 8:30am to 4:30pm on Fridays, or 9:00am to 5:15pm on Mondays to Thursdays and 9:00am to 5:00pm on Fridays
  • staff can work flexible hours with the prior agreement of their colleagues/team and line manager
  • time off in lieu may be granted for hours worked in excess

Leave

  • annual leave allowance of 23 working days per calendar year for full time staff (pro-rata for part time staff)
  • subject to Employment Ordinance, fully paid sick leave up to 44 working days in any 12 month period of which 7 (no more than 2 consecutive) uncertified
  • 12-14 public holidays per year (a mixture of UK and HK holidays)

Salary

  • salary is subjected to periodic review and paid monthly in arrears inclusive of personal tax liability
  • 13th month wage normally payable at the end of December each year. Proportionate for staff working less than full year

Pensions

  • all staff must join the BCG Mandatory Provident Fund Scheme

Medical

  • unless already covered by a scheme offering similar or better benefit, staff can either join the BCG staff Contributory (80% employer, 20% employee) Medical Scheme or the Basic Medical Scheme (100% employer) currently underwritten by CIGNA
  • there is a non-contributory Group Life Assurance policy presently underwritten by AIA