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Constitution and Administration
The government's civil service pay policy is to offer sufficient remuneration to attract, retain and motivate staff of suitable calibre to provide the public with an effective and efficient service, and to maintain broad comparability between civil service and private sector pay.
In accordance with the Basic Law, public servants serving in all government departments should be permanent residents of the HKSAR, save for those who fall within exceptions provided for in Articles 99 and 101 of the Basic Law. This requirement applies to civil servants recruited on or after 1 July 1997.
Appointment is based on open and fair competition. The government ensures persons with disabilities and ethnic minorities, like other applicants, have equal access to job opportunities in the civil service.
The government monitors staff turnover closely for manpower planning purposes. Overall wastage in the civil service was 4.8 per cent in 2019-20. A well-established mechanism is in place to review succession planning for senior staff members, identify and groom officers with potential for advancement to senior management, and develop a pool of talent for senior positions.
The government monitors the size of the civil service closely for prudent financial management. The civil service grew mostly between 1 and 1.9 per cent annually from 2007-08 to 2019-20. Its establishment in 2020-21 is estimated to increase by 3.2 per cent to facilitate the delivery of new policy initiatives and improved services to the public.
The government maintains close communication with staff and consults them on issues of concern through various channels, including an established staff consultation mechanism which consists of four staff consultative councils at the central level, namely the Senior Civil Service Council, the Model Scale 1 Staff Consultative Council, the Disciplined Services Consultative Council and the Police Force Council, and some 90 consultative committees at the departmental level.
Exemplary staff performance is recognised through various commendation schemes to motivate civil servants to provide quality service to the public, including the Secretary for the Civil Service's Commendation Award Scheme that recognises individuals with consistently outstanding performance, and the Civil Service Outstanding Service Award Scheme for achievements in service excellence on a departmental or team basis. Staff misconduct is handled under an established disciplinary mechanism for punitive and deterrent purposes. The Civil Service Bureau and the ICAC jointly run an ethical leadership programme to instil a culture of probity in the civil service.
The Civil Service Training and Development Institute formulates policies on training and development and on performance management. It organises training programmes and seminars for civil servants on leadership and management, innovation and technology, language and communication, national affairs and the Basic Law. The institute also advises bureaus and departments on how to improve staff performance, develop competency profiles, enhance leadership capabilities and prepare officers for succession. Through its e-learning
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