Home > Press Releases > 2022 > ERB 30 cum Annual Award Presentation Ceremony
Upgrading Together and Nurturing Talent for Societal Development

The Employees Retraining Board (ERB) held the ERB 30 cum Annual Award Presentation Ceremony at the Southorn Stadium in Wan Chai today (22 October 2022).  Mr Chan Kwok-ki, GBS, IDSM, JP, Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chris Sun Yuk-han, JP, Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Ms Alice Lau Yim, JP, Permanent Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Ms May Chan Wing-shiu, JP, Commissioner for Labour, Mr Yu Pang-chun, GBS, JP, Chairman of ERB, Professor Simon Wong Kit-lung, BBS, JP, Vice-chairman of ERB and Mr Byron Ng Kwok-keung, BBS, Executive Director of ERB officiated at the ceremony and witnessed the fruitful accomplishment of ERB over the past three decades.  On the occasion, over a hundred awards were conferred to ERB trainees and partners from various sectors in recognition of their remarkable achievements in skills upgrading and talent development for different professions.

At the ceremony, the Chief Secretary for Administration Mr Chan said that ERB had established a foothold in Hong Kong over the past 30 years and had been an important partner of the Government in fostering manpower development.  Through its offering of training quotas, wide-ranging courses, different training modes, and initiatives in unleashing latent workforce, ERB had teamed up with members of the public in pursuit of skills upgrading while forging ahead.  Mr Chan added that he believed ERB would continue to keep abreast of market trends and offer training courses to promote the continuous upskilling of the local workforce.  He pointed out that such stakeholders as employers, training bodies, instructors and trainees were all inter-connected with ERB, and that all of them were crucial to building the talent pool.  He firmly believed that all parties would continue to collaborate with the Government in scaling new heights.

The ERB Chairman Mr Yu Pang-chun noted in his welcoming speech that ERB had tied in with the economic momentum of Hong Kong and fulfilled its social mission of providing relevant training courses and services to support the training needs of society in the past 30 years.  Some notable measures included the expansion of service targets in 2007 to cover persons aged 15 or above with educational attainment at sub-degree level or below to support more people in need; the introduction of a sustainable concept in programme design for developing training courses that were qualification-pegged to help trainees map out their progression ladder; the launch of dedicated training courses and programmes for special target groups to help unleash latent workforce; and the launch of the “Love Upgrading Special Scheme” to alleviate the impact of the pandemic in recent years.

Mr Yu commended all award-winning trainees for their enthusiasm to learn and acquire new skills through retraining as well as their shining performance in respective professional fields.  Their achievements exemplified the value and meaning of skills training, and motivated ERB to forge ahead with its Forward, Innovative, Versatile approach in advancing its courses and service portfolio, while promoting “Retraining” and “Lifelong Learning” as shared social values.  By providing vocational and skill-based training attuned to market needs, ERB would continue to contribute to nurturing talent for industries and society, thereby supporting the sustainable development of Hong Kong.

A total of 128 awards were presented to 22 trainees, 14 instructors, 40 employers and 28 training bodies at the ceremony.  As the year marks the 30th Anniversary of the ERB, four special awards have been introduced, namely the “ERB30 Grand Award for Trainees”, the “ERB30 Grand Award for Instructor”, the “ERB30 Enterprise Partnership Award” and the “ERB30 Grand Award for Training”, to commend trainees and instructors respectively for their commitment in continuous self-upgrading and dedication in knowledge transfer, as well as to show appreciation to employer partners and training bodies for their significant contribution in promoting retraining courses and services over the years.

At the ceremony, two graduate trainees received the “ERB30 Grand Award for Trainees” and another 11 and 9 graduate trainees received the “ERB Outstanding Award for Trainees” and the “ERB Merit Award for Trainees”.  Among them were change-makers featuring an aviation practitioner who lost her job amidst the pandemic and became founder of an online floral business start-up after retraining; a graduate of health worker training course who joined the healthcare sector and dedicated herself at the frontline of elderly care during the pandemic; a misplaced ex-DSE graduate who embarked on a new career path after completing the ERB tailor-made course; and an inexperienced youth who actively equipped himself with professional knowledge and applied skills for work.  All these awardees have risen to challenges, strived for excellence, and started a new chapter in lives through training and upskilling.

For the employer awards, enterprises from different industries were acknowledged for their unswerving support to the work of ERB in 2021-22.  These included offering employment opportunities to ERB graduate trainees, providing on-the-job training and career development opportunities to the newly recruited, supporting the promotion work of ERB, and helping social groups with special needs to land jobs.

Please refer to the Chinese press release for the awardee lists and information of the “ERB30 Grand Award for Trainees” and “ERB Outstanding Award for Trainees” awardees.