TNAG-0916-FCO40-1127-Policy-on-salaries-and-pensions-for-civil-servants-in-Hong-K-1979 — Page 111

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1971 Salaries Commission's recommendations have proved unworkable. For some of the occupational classes no truly comparable work in the private sector exists. Moreover, some of the occupational classes group like with unlike and their creation has disturbed traditional and longstanding relativities within the civil service which has led in large measure to the discontent which gave rise to our appointment.

22.

If, as we propose, broad comparability with the private sector should continue as an important factor in determining civil service pay, then some satisfactory and acceptable means of linking civil service and private sector pay must be found. The occupational class system has not worked and we recommend that it should be abandoned. This raises the question of how, considering the limited degree to which work in the private sector is truly comparable with work in the civil service, jobs in the civil service are to be linked not only with jobs in the private sector but within the civil service itself. We have not found this problem easy to resolve.

23.

We believe that civil servants attach too much importance to internal relativities. In particular we cannot accept the argument advanced in some representations that because the rates of pay for two entirely different and unconnected jobs were the same 10 or 20 years ago they should be the same to-day. Job requirements change and the rate for the job may need to be adjusted accordingly whether up or down. However, we sympathise with and accept the view that if civil servants are to see their pay as fair this must be in comparison with something or someone and if they are unable to make external comparisons they will be bound to make them internally. Any new method of linking civil service and private sector pay should take account of this.

24.

In our Consultative Document we referred to two possible methods of linking civil service and private sector pay. The first, which we called the "core grade" method, involves the identification of a number of civil service jobs which can be fully and fairly compared with jobs in the private sector. The civil service grades for these jobs would become 健

'core grades" to which other civil service grades would be linked. The pay in the private sector for the jobs comparable with the core grades would then provide a guide to civil service pay for those grades and all related grades. The second method, which we called the "qualification method" involves identifying a range of jobs in the private sector for which a stated educational qualification is a normal requirement for appointment. The pay for all civil service grades requiring similar qualifications for appointment would be broadly based on the pay in the private sector for the identified jobs.

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