Human Resources

Manpower Planning

The number of civil servants in the Department increased to 7 502 by the end of March 2011. Apart from fulfilling new service demands, the extra human resources also filled existing vacancies and replaced non-civil service contract (NCSC) staff in public museums, following the Government’s decision in February 2010 for the LCSD to continue to manage the museums. The new recruits also replaced NCSC staff, the positions of which were identified for replacement by civil service posts in the Civil Service Bureau’s 2006 special review of NCSC staff in all government bureaux and departments. The Department’s workforce is expected to be further strengthened with about 280 new posts in 2011-12 to provide human resources for new facilities and services and to enhance existing services.

NCSC Staff

NCSC staff are employed by the Department under the NCSC Staff Scheme to meet our service and operational requirements. They are mainly responsible for providing general administrative support, frontline and customer services, technical support and information technology services in leisure and cultural venues and in the offices.

The Department employs NCSC staff to meet service and operational needs at our leisure and cultural venues and offices. Tung Chung Public Library is one of them.

The Department has made good progress in the past few years in replacing about 750 NCSC staff with civil servants, out of the 800 positions identified for replacement under the aforementioned special review. The majority of the remaining NCSC positions will gradually be phased out in the coming financial year when the contracts of these NCSC staff expire, and in light of the lead time required for filling related civil service posts through open recruitment.

Civil Service Staff Recruitment

2010 was a busy year for the Department on the recruitment front. Following the decision for the LCSD to continue to manage the public museums, the Department conducted a series of recruitment drives for various museum-related grades, including Assistant Curator II (Art), Assistant Curator II (Conservation), Assistant Curator II (History), Assistant Curator II (Science), Technical Officer II (Design) (Cultural Services) and Technical Officer II (Engineering) (Cultural Services). Other recruitment exercises involved filling positions of Assistant Librarian, Assistant Manager, Cultural Services and, on the leisure services side, Assistant Leisure Services Manager II, Amenities Assistant III, Artisan (Beach/Swimming Pool) and Artisan (Lifeguard at Water Sports Centre). 344 departmental grade new recruits reported for duty in 2010-11.

The Department recruited a number of departmental grade staff for various divisions, including beach/swimming pool attendants.

Staff Training and Development

The Department’s Training Section offered a wide range of programmes in 2010-11.

Growing environmental awareness and public concern about tree management increased the demand for tree specialists. Therefore, the Training Section organised professional training for the staff involved to strengthen their arboriculture knowledge and professionalism. During the year, the main focus of training was on tree inspection, pathology and risk assessment to enhance remedial measures for problem trees. The training included: the Certified Tree Risk Assessor Training Programme in December 2010 for 32 staff of Leisure Services Manager and Amenities Assistant grades; seminars on Tree Inspection for some 1 000 staff; and a tree pathology training course for 58 staff. In addition, we organised a Certified Arborist training programme in October 2010. Twenty-two Leisure Services Managers and Amenities Assistants got International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist, a professional qualification. We also arranged training for other recognised qualifications, including ISA Certified Tree Worker/Climber Specialist, BSc in Arboriculture (UK), Diploma in Forestry and Arboriculture (UK) and Tree Surgery for Craftsmen (UK). Six members of staff went to Singapore on a study visit on Tree Management and Maintenance.

The Training Section regularly organises programmes to enhance the professionalism of our staff.

Our tree management staff got to learn the latest tree management and maintenance skills at the conference of International Society of Arboriculture.

One of the Department’s core missions is to strive for service excellence. The Training Section provides comprehensive customer service training to staff. In 2010-11, the Training Section introduced the ‘Know Your Customers, Serve Better’ workshop series, focusing on customers with special needs, such as the visually impaired, the disabled and people with mood disorders with potential for violence. Staff learned about different customer needs so that they could evaluate the current service level with a view to improvement.

Several workshops were also held to train assistant librarians on quality frontline services. Further, to strengthen public safety at all our venues, we organised training programmes throughout the year with various professional institutions to ensure our staff are well-informed about fire prevention and fire fighting, as well as crowd control.

To foster high standards, special training was offered in such areas as emergency management, building strategic alliances, Internet marketing, mobile marketing and leadership. In addition, we sponsored professional training in museology, librarianship, arts administration and performing arts appreciation.

Staff are also given opportunities to broaden their cultural knowledge through overseas training and internship programmes and exchanges with prestigious international cultural institutions. The valuable experience and knowledge thus gained have enabled them to plan our public events more imaginatively, helping Hong Kong retain its status as a world-class events capital.

An intern in the conservation programme secures the loose threads on an 18th Century tapestry.

To enhance lifesaving services at our swimming pools, we arranged from April 1, 2011 new Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) courses to teach our lifeguards how to operate the machine and help them get relevant certification.

The Department introduced AEDs at all public swimming pools from April 1, 2011. In the picture, lifeguards demonstrate first aid skills with AEDs.

The Training Section continued to provide Occupational Health and Safety training programmes aimed at minimising workplace injuries. This year, new courses such as the Basic Fire Fighting Training Course, Prevention of Violence at Work Places and Breakaway Techniques were offered to enhance occupational safety awareness among frontline staff.

We also continued to provide competency certificates to district and venue safety officers, including the Basic Safety Management Training for District/Venue Safety Officers, Certificate of Competency in Display Screen Equipment Assessment and the Certificate of Competency in Manual Handling. In addition, the Training Section also organised courses on Manual Lifting and Handling, Prevention of Slippery Floors and High Level Work, Work Under Very Hot Weather, Avoid Being Stung by Bees, Electricity Safety, Prevention of Fire and Stress Management.

In 2010-11, the Department continued with a government initiative to offer temporary jobs to youngsters, through three schemes: Swimming Pool Trainee (SPT), Beach Trainee (BT) and Library Assistant Trainee (LAT). Under the SPT and BT schemes, the Training Section provided four to six months’ training to over 60 youngsters, of whom more than 90 per cent passed the examinations to gain lifeguard qualifications. These graduates were able to find jobs in public and private aquatic venues. Some applied to join government service as civil service lifeguards.

Our Training Section also provided a number of regular programmes covering various leisure and cultural services disciplines, in addition to general knowledge and skills training, supervisory management, language and communication, computer software applications and IT.

The Translation and Interpretation Section regularly invites academics to educate our staff.

Overall 2010-11 was a successful year. Most of our training programmes were very effective, as reflected in the excellent ratings by trainees. Abundant training opportunities and about 15 800 training places were made available to all grades and ranks throughout the year, including NCSC and ex-Council contract staff.

Staff Relations and Communication

Our staff is our greatest asset. The Department maintains good staff relations through excellent communication.

Management maintains regular contact with staff through meetings of the Departmental Consultative Committee, the General Grades Consultative Committee and with staff unions. In addition, ad hoc meetings, informal gatherings and briefings are held to discuss issues of mutual concern. The director also meets staff and union representatives to gain a better understanding of their concerns and take appropriate action.

The Departmental Consultative Committee holds regular meetings with staff to discuss their issues of concern.

Individual needs are given equal attention. The Staff Relations-Staff Welfare Unit attends to requests and enquiries from staff regarding their welfare and other concerns. Staff are encouraged to make suggestions about improving and streamlining operations and/or the management of the Department.

The Department organises recreational activities like the popular annual karaoke contest. To enhance team spirit, we also organise well-attended special-interest classes on such topics as horticulture and physical fitness. The Departmental Volunteer Team and 15 sports teams also encourage staff to use their leisure time for worthwhile pursuits. This year, the Volunteer Team arranged for underprivileged families to attend the annual Hong Kong Flower Show. The sports teams participated in various open and inter-departmental competitions.

The Departmental Volunteer Team, working with the Social Welfare Department, accompanied about 30 Shek Kip Mei residents to the Hong Kong Flower Show.

Our 15 Departmental Sports Teams participated in various open and inter-departmental sports contests and won many medals in the Corporate Games.

The quarterly staff newsletter is another effective medium for staff communication.

Staff Motivation

Recognition plays a key role in building a motivated and committed workforce. Staff who have served well for 20 years or more are eligible for consideration for Long and Meritorious Service Certificates and Long and Meritorious Service Travel Awards. In 2010-11, 120 staff also received Certificates of Merit for good service.

LCSD Director Mrs Betty Fung (centre) and former Departmental Secretary Angel Choi (first right) with those who received commendations by the Secretary for the Civil Service.

We also nominate staff for external commendations. In 2010-11, four members of our staff were awarded commendations by the Secretary for the Civil Service for their consistently meritorious daily performance. We are particularly proud of the nine officers who received awards from the Chief Executive at the 2010 Honours and Awards Ceremony in recognition of their excellent service.

The Chief Executive's Commendations for Government/Public Service were awarded to LCSD staff for their great effort to make the Hong Kong 2009 East Asian Games a rousing success.

Mr Szeto Yuen-kit was another recipient of the Chief Executive's Commendation for Government/Public Service for his efforts to popularise Chinese painting and calligraphy.

The Department’s Customer Appreciation Card Scheme is a channel for staff to receive direct customer feedback. Staff are also encouraged to develop and improve service standards through the Staff Suggestion Scheme, Work Improvement Teams and Staff Recognition Award in various leisure venues, and the Work Improvement Competition in public libraries.

Staff of Southern District public libraries received the Improvement of Service Quality in Library Scheme award for helping cultivate the reading habit among youngsters.

Staff of Kwun Tong Swimming Pool won the Work Improvement Team Award for improving the service quality at the venue.

Customer Service

Customer focus is a core value of the Department. In 2010-11, we received more than 10 400 appreciation cards and over 1 000 compliments from our customers. This is most encouraging, especially for our frontline staff.