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Lo Hoi-ying

Hong Kong’s key decision-making body has formally approved an across-the-board pay rise of 3 per cent for civil servants this year – below suggested increments of at least 4.01 per cent – citing the need for prudence.
The Civil Service Bureau said on Tuesday that the Chief Executive-in-Council had endorsed the increase for government workers in the upper, middle and lower salary bands and at the directorate level.
The city’s leader acted following consultation with the key decision-making Executive Council and “balanced all relevant factors”, a bureau spokesman said.
A pay trend survey announced last month had suggested increments of 4.01 per cent for high-ranking civil servants, 4.32 per cent for middle-level ones and 5.47 per cent for junior workers.
Union leaders had earlier called for pay rises that matched the survey figures, pointing to inflation, additional workload and staff shortages.
The vacancy rate in the 170,000-strong civil service has risen to 10 per cent, with more than 20,000 positions left unfilled.
Gene Fung Chuen-chung, chairman of the Hong Kong Civil Servants General Union, told the Post that while his organisation was disappointed the increase did not match the pay trend survey suggestions, it accepted and respected the government’s decision.
Fung said that although he appreciated the salary rise, the bureau should consider whether the increase was enough to solve the bigger issue of staff shortages.
“We will still have to wait and see whether we will continue to see a brain drain, or if this pay rise will be enough to maintain the attractiveness of the job,” he said.
Junior staff would be the most disappointed as they did not get the suggested 5.47 per cent, he said.
“I am worried they will not be motivated to stay in the civil service if the pay rise remains lower than the private market for a few years and they don’t see any room for promotion.”
He said annual leave and healthcare benefits in the civil service were inferior compared with those in the private sector.
“The brain drain and vacancies are not new, they have been an issue for the past two years, which proves that this is a structural problem,” he said.
Civil service chief Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan said the 3 per cent increase was to acknowledge workers who “walked the extra mile” to resume normal operations after torrential rain battered the city last year, with a black rainstorm alert in force for more than 16 hours.
The Executive Council said that it had “thoroughly considered” the staff’s response and other relevant factors such as the state of Hong Kong’s economy, the government’s fiscal position, changes in the cost of living, the net pay trend indicators, and civil service morale.
“In view of the government’s current fiscal deficit, we need to be prudent in handling the civil service pay adjustment,” a bureau spokesman said.
“In the meantime, the vacancy level in the civil service has climbed to 10 per cent under a tight labour market. Civil servants of all ranks have shouldered additional responsibilities.”
The spokesman added that the economy had recorded actual growth with inflation, with pay rises in private organisations over the past year.
The government said it would submit the pay rise proposal to the Legislative Council’s Finance Committee for consideration as soon as possible.
According to government estimates, a deficit of HK$48 billion will be recorded in 2024-25, followed by a surplus of HK$6.3 billion in the 2025-26 financial year.


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Hong Kong politics

Hong Kong’s top decision-making body approves 3% pay rise for all civil servants

A recent pay trend survey had suggested salary increases of up to 5.47 per cent for Hong Kong government staff. Photo: Edmond So

Hong Kong civil servants to get 3% pay rise, below rates recommended in pay trend survey

Salary adjustment for the civil service take into account factors such as trends in the private labour market and cost of living. Photo: Jelly Tse

Civil servants leave the government headquarters at Tamar. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Hong Kong’s largest civil service union backs proposed pay rise of up to 5.47%, points to staffing shortage

The union’s secretary general also noted the civil service comprised 197,000 posts, with about 170,000 being filled. Photo: Jelly Tse

The survey’s proposed increases are substantially higher than those from last year. Photo: Jelly Tse

News

Hong Kong

Politics

Chief Executive-in-Council has endorsed the increase for all government workers


Chief Executive-in-Council has endorsed the increase for all government workers.
