Hong Kong – Opening remarks by SCS on civil service pay adjustment at media session (with video)

     Following is the opening remarks by the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, at a media session on offers of 2022-23 civil service pay adjustment at Central Government Offices this afternoon (July 5):

     The current-term Government highly values co-operation with the civil service, and expects the civil service to continue to discharge their duties professionally and efficiently to meet public expectations. The Government fully understands the concern of civil service colleagues about the timetable of the civil service pay adjustment exercise. In addition, civil service pay adjustment will have a bearing on non-civil service contract staff, as well as the subventions received by subvented organisations and the pay of their staff of these organisations.

     In order to expedite the exercise, the Government has decided to significantly compress the work timetable and handle this issue at the first meeting of the current-term Executive Council.

     Having taken into consideration the six relevant factors under the established mechanism, namely the state of Hong Kong’s economy, changes in the cost of living, the Government’s fiscal position, civil service morale, the net pay trend indicators (PTIs) and the pay claims of the staff side, the Chief Executive-in-Council (CE-in-Council) has decided earlier today that an offer be made to the staff side of the four civil service central consultative councils, under which the pay for civil servants in the upper, middle and lower salary bands and the directorate be increased at the same rate of 2.5 per cent for 2022-23, effective retrospectively from April 1. 

     Hong Kong’s economy has been in a complex situation in the past year. Despite the strong rebound in 2021, the economy was severely hit in the first quarter of 2022 amidst the fifth wave of the epidemic. Although the business atmosphere and the employment situation have changed for the better in recent months, there remain uncertainties in the overall economic situation. The offer to increase the pay at the same rate of 2.5 per cent across the board is a decision taken after balancing factors including the increase in the cost of living in the past year, the changes in the economic situation, the Government’s fiscal position, the positive net PTIs for all three salary bands for 2022, and the exemplary commitment of civil servants from all ranks in fighting the epidemic.

     Moving forward, I will meet with the representatives of the four central consultative councils tomorrow (July 6) to listen to their views on the pay offer. We will then proceed to seek the CE-in-Council’s decision on the final pay adjustment magnitude after taking into account the response from the staff side. Thank you.