Hong Kong will implement its first minimum wage rate, set at HK$28 per hour, from next year, the Secretary for Labor and Welfare Matthew Cheung Kin-chung said Wednesday.
The initial statutory minimum wage rate at 3.61 per hour in U.S dollar terms will come into force on May 1, 2011. The rate was higher than that demanded by business, and less than the HK$33 favored by trade unions.
Cheung said that the statutory minimum wage, which is totally new to Hong Kong, is intended to protect grassroots workers and ensure that the pay that they get is commensurate with the hours worked.
Regarding the wage rate, Chief Executive Donald Tsang said that it has been a subject of controversy and it is also a milestone in our protection of the rights of low-income workers.
The minimum wage ordinance notice 2010 will be published in the Gazette on November 12 and tabled at the Legislative Council on November 17.
About 314,600 or 11.3% of Hong Kong's employees will be effected by the change, with 61.4% being women staff, 25.3% employees aged 55 and above, and 18.8% part-time workers, the government's information service department said.
In July, Hong Kong's Legislative Council passed the Minimum Wage Bill without stipulating the actual wage and thereafter formed a committee to set the minimum rate.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.