Hong Kong Civil Servant Vacancy Rate Reaches Record High Since 1997 Handover

Civil servants on their way to the Hong Kong government. Sung Pi-lung/The Epoch Times

As of late 2023, Hong Kong’s civil service team hit a 10.3 percent vacancy rate with 20,000 vacancies, the highest since the handover in 1997. A former civil servant believes the change may relate to Hong Kong’s eroding freedoms.

According to government statistics, the Hong Kong Police Force has the highest vacancy rate among various policy bureaus, departments, and offices. Of the 37,993 positions, only 31,156 are filled, with 6,837 vacancies at an 18 percent vacancy rate.

The Education Bureau follows, with 983 vacancies at a 15.6 percent vacancy rate. Next is the Department of Health, with 896 vacancies and a 12.9 percent vacancy rate, and the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, with 1,236 vacancies and a 10.8 percent vacancy rate.

Government figures show that the civil service vacancy rate reached 10.3 percent in December 2023, the highest since Hong Kong’s handover from British rule to China in 1997.

Graph showing the number of Hong Kong civil servants and vacancy rate (quarterly) from June 1997 to December 2023. The Epoch Times

Since March 2021, the vacancy rate has gradually increased from 7.9 to 8.7 percent in March 2022, reaching 10.2 percent in June 2023. Despite dropping slightly to 10.1 percent in September, it reached a new high of 10.3 percent in December 2023.

The Civil Service Bureau states that reasons for vacancies include retirement, resignations, and vacancies created for implementing new measures and improving service.

Resignations Hit New High

Data shows that the resignation rate of Hong Kong civil servants has always been relatively low. In 2015, it was just over 1,000 people. However, from the fiscal year 2017/18 to 2020/21, before the Anti-Extradition Movement and the National Security Law, the number of civil servants resigning reached between 1,333 and 1,863 per year.

After the National Security Law was implemented in June 2020, civil servants were required to sign a national security declaration. The number of civil servants resigning surged to 3,743 in the fiscal year 2021/22, a rate of 2.2 percent, reaching a new high since the handover in 1997.

Among the civil servants who resigned in the fiscal year 2021/22, 1,250 had served continuously for over ten years but had not reached retirement age. The Department of Health had the highest resignation number, with 113 people, followed by the Social Welfare Department and the Education Bureau, with 94 and 90 people, respectively.

129 Civil Servants Refused to Take Oath of Allegiance

The Civil Service Bureau introduced arrangements in October 2020 and January 2021, requiring newly hired and current civil servants to take an oath or sign a declaration to uphold the Basic Law, “bear allegiance” to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), “be dedicated to their duties and be responsible to the HKSAR government.”

Mr. Chan (pseudonym), who worked as a frontline staff member of Hong Kong Post for over 20 years, is among those who resigned in mid-2021.

At first, Mr. Chan signed the declaration and kept working due to financial considerations, but soon after, 20 to 30 of his colleagues resigned at the same time, stating that they could not accept the social atmosphere and moved abroad later, he told The Epoch Times.

Mr. Chan has now moved to the UK after considering the political risk involved. He said four to five of his colleagues refused to sign the declaration and resigned.

In June 2022, Erick Tsang Kwok-wai, Secretary for the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, said that 129 civil servants had refused to sign or return the declaration without reasonable explanation. These individuals had all left work by the end of 2021 or earlier.

People attend a protest held by civil servants in the Central District of Hong Kong on Aug. 2, 2019. Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty Images

Updated Code of Conduct Requires Allegiance to CCP

In late 2023, the Hong Kong authorities proposed an update to the Civil Servants’ Code. While maintaining political neutrality has been one of the core tenets of the code, the update specified that they must pledge allegiance to the country [the CCP] and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The updated draft of the Code expanded the number of fundamental beliefs that civil servants must adhere to from 6 to 12, including elements such as “upholding constitutional order and national security,” “confidentiality principles,” and “team spirit.”

Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan, Secretary of the Civil Service Bureau, said at the time that in 2019, some civil servants believed that “political neutrality” meant they didn’t have to support the sitting government, which she described as a misinterpretation. “

Furthermore, Ms. Yeung stated that if a civil servant’s personal expression in their private space violates the code of conduct and is discovered by the authorities or subject to relevant complaints, the government would take action. “In their capacity as civil servants, they cannot criticize any government policies or support opposing views of other parties,” she added.

Joining Civil Service Means Less Freedom

Mr. Chan believes that further restrictions by the authorities may deter students who have witnessed social events in the past few years from applying for civil service jobs.

“If you join this industry, your freedom will be reduced further. Nowadays, [society] has no freedom, yet you want to join an industry with constraints. Isn’t that trapping yourself to death?”

In addition, he believes that the rising vacancy rate for civil servants also relates to the rapid expansion of the civil service workforce in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Most of those civil servants have now reached retirement age.

While some of his former colleagues are resentful of the current political atmosphere, those who used to speak out are now silent due to economic concerns, said Mr. Chan, who keeps in touch with former colleagues.

A riot police officer (C) stands guard during a clearance operation during a demonstration in a mall in Hong Kong on July 6, 2020. Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images

Mr. Chan also mentioned that after the National Security Law and oath-taking requirement, a culture of “reporting” emerged within the government, citing a civil servant who volunteered for the Civil Human Rights Front in 2019 and was summoned by their superiors years later after being anonymously reported.

“Whether it’s the National Security Law or changes to the Civil Servants Code, it [the Hong Kong authorities] want to eliminate dissenting voices,” he said, adding that the authorities have “messed up the mechanism” and the change from an impartial civil service team to the current state is “sad.”

Forced to Watch Propaganda Films

Since late 2023, Hong Kong civil servants have been required to watch training videos in the name of “national security.”

Civil servants who watched the videos were required to keep the content confidential, but based on leaks, some videos characterized the 2019 Anti-Extradition Movement as a “color revolution” and alleged Western media “cooperated” with the protestors.

Some former colleagues who watched the videos found them “amusing,” said Mr. Chan, adding that currently, civil servants have “a lot of pointless things to deal with” beyond their duties.

Asked if it’s harder to be a civil servant now than before, Mr. Chan said, “It definitely is,” citing an example that shortly after he resigned, the authorities required all civil servants to be vaccinated to enter government buildings.

The Hong Kong government first required all unvaccinated government employees to undergo regular testing at their own expense to go to work. However, the frequency changed from every two weeks initially (August 2021) to every three days by December 2021.