Pedestrians, many of them wearing face masks, use a crossing in Central, Hong Kong, on Feb 28, 2023. (ANDY CHONG / CHINA DAILY)

HONG KONG –  Hong Kong’s statutory minimum wage has been raised from HK$37.5 per hour ($4.78) to HK$40 per hour starting Monday, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government said.

In a statement, the HKSAR government said the minimum wage covers employees whether they are monthly-rated, daily-rated, hourly-rated, piece-rated, or permanent, casual, full-time or part-time workers.

On Jan 10, the government said that the Chief Executive in Council had adopted the recommendation of the Minimum Wage Commission on raising the statutory minimum wage to HK$40, up 6.7 percent.

Employees with disabilities can opt for a productivity assessment to determine whether they should be paid at no less than the minimum wage or at a rate commensurate with their productivity

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The statutory minimum wage is not applicable to live-in domestic workers, student interns and work experience students under the Minimum Wage Ordinance, according to the statement.

It added that the minimum wage also protects employees with disabilities, who can opt for a productivity assessment to determine whether they should be paid at no less than the minimum wage or at a rate commensurate with their productivity. 

The HKSAR government also said that the the monthly monetary cap on the requirement of employers recording the total number of hours worked by employees under the Employment Ordinance was raised from HK$15,300 to HK$16,300 effective Monday. 

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When wages payable in respect of a wage period are less than $16,300 per month, the employer is required to keep a record of the total number of hours worked by the employee in that wage period, the government added.

With Xinhua inputs