Lingnan University researchers on Friday called on the government to work on reopening its borders with the mainland, saying around a third of people they interviewed had lost their jobs or became temporarily unemployed due to a substantial drop in visitors to the SAR.

The team surveyed 1,242 Hong Kong adults last month.

The study also found that two-third of respondents reported seeing their income drop as a result of the border control measures, while one in ten saw their income fall by at least 30 percent.

“I think this is indeed very serious, especially for those working in the area of tourism and also in catering," said the university's vice-president, Professor Joshua Mok, who led the project.

"Many of our retails are affected by the decline of international and mainland visitors to Hong Kong. It has affected their employment and immediately affected their salaries."

He urged the SAR to first negotiate with Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Zhuhai officials to resume quarantine-free travel.