Hey geminijets,
I moved myself and my family from North America to Hong Kong 2 years ago to work for a large Asian carrier based in Hong Kong.
For me, the city has been a real mix of ups and downs. Be prepared to do a little more work just to get the basic things in life, and a whole lot of paperwork and old English bureaucracy to get the major things done. The public transport infrastructure in Hong Kong is I believe second to none in the world so it is quite possible to commute to the airport as required for work. However the basic theme seems to be that once you've had enough of someone coughing up phlegm in your ear you may opt for taxis or a personal vehicle. We do just fine on the bus and MTR and will most likely stay that way.
Being situated in this part of the world is definitely a plus. All those beautiful places to visit are on your doorstep and significantly cheaper and less time consuming to visit than from Europe or NA.
The main thing you'll hear over and over again when living here is the environment. What the Chinese are doing to their air and water systems is in a word shocking. They attempt to justify it by saying "the country is modernizing; the west did it now it's our turn". The unfortunate reality is that only a relatively small portion of the Chinese are on this so called wave of modernization leaving the vast majority of peasants behind to live and work in the world’s most polluted areas. Another consideration is that when western countries modernized they had populations to support equivalent to a drop in the bucket as far as china's concerned. The current political/business system in China is very contagious in the region and unfortunately is being represented more and more everyday in Hong Kong. The political economic powers in the region are likened only to a supreme being, they giveth and taketh away(while of course trying to make you think you really did or didn't want it anyway). When the issue of air pollution rears its ugly head the Beijing appointed administration points the finger at the coal power stations and manufacturing plants on mainland Chinese soil. They claim that it is out of the hands and we need to focus on the pollution emitted from Hong Kong. Now this is all fine and dandy however with a slight wind shift in direction and velocity you'll quickly note the origin of most of the pollution. The ironic thing is the majority of the damaging plants and factories in the region are owned and operated by Hong Konger's who have more than enough money and resources to purchase the existing technologies to clean it up. Personally I think they should be publicly identified as the perpetrators of the current mess. China and Hong Kong are not the only ones to blame in this environmental catastrophe. If western countries stop opening dollar stores on every corner then perhaps the manufacturing in the region would be forced to slow. To see for yourself please look at the Environmental Protection Dept website (
http://www.epd-asg.gov.hk/eindex.php). Keep in mind that when a large city the size of Toronto which is subject to smoggy and humid condition in the summer have RSP reading upwards of 30 they issue public health advisories. You’ll note that HK is rarely if ever below 30.
When you move your family to the other side of the globe you expect something in return. A contract is signed and shortly thereafter the airline slowly begins to change and whittle away the initial terms and conditions of the agreement. After a short time your career outlook, compensation, benefits and mental status are a darn sight different than when you signed on. There are very few and I mean very few labor laws on Hong Kong so you will have no chance at defending yourself in the courts against the economic beast. Unions are also illegal and unrecognized. The current pay status with the major carriers in HK has fallen behind some European carriers and when you factor in the exchange rate they are well behind some. Don't expect to have 24 days off a month and take home $100,000 as some insightful individuals have previously mentioned. Besides I highly doubt they want the fellow at the pointy end collecting food stamps when something goes wrong and he has 400 pax and a mucho $$$ airplane to protect.
The long and short of this whole rant is that Hong Kong definitely has something to offer but nothing comes easily so be prepared to make a trade off. If you go ahead with the move do it with your eyes wide open. Take health, environment, currency exchange, industrial relations, possibilities to move back home, living expenses and basic lifestyle into account. Most of all good luck!