Hong Kong’s government may raise civil servant salaries by up to 4.12 percent this year and plans to introduce a revamped appraisal system for its employees in October, a minister said.
Civil Service Secretary Ingrid Yeung said On Thursday the preliminary results of the 2026 Salary Trend Survey suggested a salary increase of 4.12 percent for senior civil servants, 2.64 percent for mid-level employees and 1.17 percent for junior staff.
The suggestions are based on findings from a survey of about 155,000 employees from 104 private companies conducted between April 2025 and April 2026. The survey results will be one of six factors considered by the Executive Council, the city’s top decision-making body, for a salary adjustment, Yeung said.
Other factors include “civil servants’ demand for salary adjustment and their morale,” Yeung said, adding: “I will meet with their representatives next week on these issues.”
The government wage trend survey resumed this year, following a wage freeze until 2025, amid a three-year fiscal deficit that has strained public finances.
Financial Secretary Paul Chan suggested in his annual budget speech in February that the government could see one Surplus HK$2.9 billion in fiscal year 2025-26.
Asked on Thursday whether a pay rise for civil servants would lead to a backlash after the death fire Tai PoYeung said the “vast majority” of government workers “are professional, efficient and dedicated”.
“For those few underperforming civil servants, I believe the best way is to treat them established mechanisms“, she said.
Yeung also said that under the revised appraisal system, performance appraisals of civil servants will be skewed and the bottom five to 10 percent of staff may not receive a raise.
Department heads, especially those leading smaller teams or highly professional workers, can present a case to the Civil Service Bureau if they find the performance of all their staff members satisfactory, she added.
She promised that the authorities would review the new mechanism to ensure fairness in assessment.
