Civil servant vacancies at over 10pc

Vacancy within the civil service is currently over 10 percent, Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan has revealed.

Yeung added that a 3 percent across-the-board pay hike means all civil servants received the same recognition for their performance.

The pay rise, effective from April 1, was lower than the pay trend survey recommendations of a 4.01 percent increase for senior civil servants, 4.32 percent for middle-rank officers, and 5.47 percent for junior staff. Yeung said while the pay rise was below the survey recommendations, it still recognizes government employees' efforts over the past year and maintains their purchasing power.

"I don't think the pay rise this time is lousy. The increase will not leave us materially deficient," she said.

Yeung said the government must consider its financial situation when adjusting civil service salaries. A pay hike higher than affordability could worsen the fiscal deficit, she added.

The attrition rate among civil servants has dropped from a peak of 2.19 percent in 2022/23 to 1.65 percent last year, though the vacancy rate remains above 10 percent.

"We've stepped up recruitment since last year as we now allow third-year university students to apply for government jobs and obtain conditional offers," she said.

Yeung added civil servant jobs are still attractive as government employees get to work in the disciplinary forces, the Hong Kong Observatory and government laboratories.

But civil servant unions expressed disappointment with the pay rise, as Chinese Civil Servants' Association secretary general Tsoi Koon-lung said junior officers will only have a raise of several hundreds of dollars. "Although the rise can catch up with inflation, it cannot help junior officers improve their living quality, which will affect the attractiveness of government jobs," he said.

Hong Kong Civil Servants General Union chairman Fung Chuen-chung said disregarding the pay trend survey may deter job seekers from joining the civil service.