TNAG-1483-FCO40-2037-Economic-situation-in-Hong-Kong-1986 — Page 231

Wages and earnings

4.10

Comparing March 1986 with March 1985, earnings of manufacturing workers, in terms of payroll per person engaged, increased by 12% in money terms; in real terms, the increase

was 10%. The significant increase in payroll per person

engaged was largely due to an increase in overtime work, following a revival in manufacturing activity since March 1986 (paragraph 5.2). Average wage rates in the manufacturing sector increased by 5% in money terms, or 3% in real

between March 1985 and March 1986.

terms

(12)

4.11

sectors

Payroll per person engaged in the services was, on average, higher by 7% in

in money terms or 5% in real terms in March 1986 than in March 1985. Within these sectors, payroll per person engaged in the financing, insurance, real estate and business services sector increased by 5% in money terms or 3% in real terms. Payroll per person engaged in the wholesale, retail and import/export trades rose by 8% in money terms or 6응 in real terms, while that in restaurants and

hotels rose by 5% in money terms or 3% in real terms.

/4.12

(12)

While wage rates provide a measure of the price of labour, payroll per person engaged is a measure of per capita earnings. Wage rates represent the amount of remuneration for normal hours of work, and are defined to include basic wages

wages and salaries, cost-of-living allowance, meal benefits, commission and tips, good attendance bonus and night shift allowance. In addition, year-end bonus and other guaranteed and regular bonuses and allowances that are paid less frequently than monthly are converted to an equivalent monthly rate when compiling the wage rate indexes. Total payroll, on the other hand, is the amount of direct cash payments that employees receive from their employers. Apart from the above-mentioned cash receipts, it also includes over-time pay and other non-guaranteed and irregular bonuses and allowances. Hence, statistics on payroll per person engaged tend

tend to be sensitive to changes in the number of hours actually worked, the timing of the payment of bonuses and back-pay, and the composition of the labour force. As a result, movements in wage rates do not necessarily conform with those in payroll per person engaged.

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