Hong Kong’s Legislative Council has urged the Government to reform the Public Service in order to “boost effectiveness, with new ways to measure workers’ performance”.
Lawmaker, Connie Lam said there had been a shortage of workers amid the COVID-19 outbreak while many Public Servants were allowed to work from home.
“I note that Civil Servants are set to receive pay rises even though many citizens are disappointed with their performance,” Ms Lam said.
“This shows the mechanism for awarding pay increases is ridiculous and needs to be revamped.”
Another lawmaker, Kitson Yang said without a reward and punishment system, some Public Servants did not care about the quality of their work.
“A set of key performance indicators should be introduced to determine whether Civil Servants are eligible for pay rises and promotions,” Mr Yang (pictured) said.
Legislator, Chau Siu-chung disagreed, saying the efficiency of the Hong Kong Government was internationally acclaimed thanks to the contribution of its Public Servants.
Secretary for the Public Service, Patrick Nip agreed that the management of Public Servants should keep up with the times.
“A fair mechanism is in place to choose the most suitable candidates for promotion. However, we will study how to improve their job appraisals,” Mr Nip said.
He noted that in the past five years, more than 1,000 Public Servants had been punished for crimes or serious misconduct, more than 150 of whom had been fired.
Hong Kong, 4 June 2022
