HK$110 Increase In Maids' Wages Deemed 'insulting'

The minimum wage for foreign domestic workers will rise by 2.4 percent, or HK$110 to HK$4,630 a month, the government announced on Friday.

The new wage levels will apply to all helpers who sign contracts on or after Saturday.

Food allowances for workers who are not provided with food will rise by HK$46 to at least HK$1,121 a month.

A Government spokesman said officials arrived at the new figures after a regular review, taking into careful consideration Hong Kong's general economic and labour market conditions over the past year.

He added that the government has also taken into account the city’s near-term economic outlook, and balanced the affordability of hiring maids for employers, with the interests of the foreign helpers.

But an advocacy group has slammed the 2.4 percent increase as an ‘insult.’

A spokeswoman for the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body, Eni Lestari, said the pay rise is “degrading and also demeaning to the real contribution of the 380,000 foreign domestic workers to the Hong Kong economy and society.”

She said monthly salaries for foreign domestic helpers should rise to at least HK$5,894 per month to accurately account for inflation over the years.