'Casual Fridays Set Tone For Work-life Balance'

The government's Dress Casual Friday scheme, which starts this week, has been hailed as a "great initiative" by a top recruiter.

Leslie Tang is head of client solutions in Greater China for Randstad Hong Kong, a firm whose research has found Hong Kong people rate a good work-life balance just as highly as having an attractive salary. He was speaking on RTHK's Hong Kong Today programme.

Casual Fridays have been in place in parts of the private sector for years, but Tang said the government's new policy could help to change the culture at smaller companies.

"The government's initiative could really set a tone and gives smaller companies guidelines on how they can model their HR intiatives," he said.

He added that employers who had insitituted policies such as four-day work weeks and mental wellness days had reaped the benefits in recent years.

"It's clear that better work-life balance improves time management, fosters a good work culture and helps people build better connections over non-work activities," he said. "You find there's better productivity, better staff retention and better stress management."

Tang said Randstad had been surveying Hongkongers about their work-life priorities for a decade and that sentiment had changed over time.

"Work-life balance is now on a par with salary," he said. "Given that we are one of the most expensive cities in the world, that change speaks for itself."