Pay plans 'threaten stability of service'

The proposals by a government-appointed taskforce on a new civil service pay system threatens the stability of the civil service, says an academic.

James Sung Lap-kung, a senior lecturer at City University's School of Continuing and Professional Education, told a forum yesterday that the plans were 'earth-shaking' and would have a bad effect on stability in the civil service.

He said it would be difficult to set a benchmark to link pay to performance as proposed.

'The business sector stresses profit-making when setting the benchmark to gauge the performance of the civil service and to link pay to performance - that profits are made, money is saved, and they [the civil service] do not mind working overtime,' Professor Sung said.

'But civil servants stress benefits to the community and co-operation as a team to provide services. They have to work under a lot of legal constraints. They always have to strike a balance with the interests from all sides of the community to execute their work.'

Sharing Professor Sung's views, Poon Wai-ming, the vice-chairman of the Senior Non-Expatriate Officers Association, said introducing the mode of governance adopted by the business sector into the civil service would hurt team spirit.