Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu on Tuesday announced that in October, the government will introduce a new accountability system for department heads, and a strengthened appraisal mechanism for public servants.
Both initiatives were first outlined in his latest Policy Address in September.
Lee said that these measures aim to deliver higher-quality public services and enhance governance efficiency. The new system will equip department heads with tools — especially “a clear reward-and-penalty system” — to build capable and motivated teams.
“High achievers deserve praise. Those who fall short should be told to work harder,” Lee said.
The revamped appraisal framework will adopt a “guided distribution of rating”, ranging from “poor” to “excellent”, to prevent a situation in which most employees receive “satisfactory” marks.
Under the new rules, the bottom 5 to 10 percent of public servants will face a six-month pay progression freeze, which may be extended an additional six months if they fail to meet improvement targets.
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Also on Tuesday, Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan said the public servants will receive a blanket 2 percent pay raise, backdated to April 1, ending last year’s pay freeze.
The pay hike, costing around HK$6 billion ($765.6 million) in public funds, reflects a “reasonable adjustment”, Yeung said.
She said the decision took into account multiple factors, including the city’s economic performance, fiscal health, cost-of-living changes, net pay trend, and the need to maintain morale among government employees.
Yeung added the raise serves as an affirmation of public servants’ work over the past year, and hopes it lifts morale as the current administration is seeking to build an active government that “carries out its duties diligently and confronts challenges head-on”.
She said that in terms of “government efficiency”, Hong Kong was ranked second globally in the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2025, published by the International Institute for Management Development.
Yeung also said that the modest increase reflects the administration’s commitment to exercising fiscal prudence, especially amid ongoing global economic and geopolitical uncertainties.
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The 2 percent raise falls short of proposals from several public service unions, which had suggested increases of 3 to 4.12 percent.
An independent annual pay trend survey recommended net pay increases for the 2026-27 fiscal year of 4.12 percent for senior officials, 2.64 percent for midlevel officers, and 1.17 percent for the rank-and-file staff members. Figures were lower overall than those proposed in the last survey for 2024-25.
Contact the writer at wanqing@chinadailyhk.com
