HONG KONG – The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government on Friday announced that the minimum allowable wage for foreign domestic helpers will rise by 2.5 percent to HK$4,990 per month.

The new rates will apply to all contracts signed from Saturday onwards, the government said in a statement.

The contracts signed on or before Friday at the existing minimum rates will still be processed by the Immigration Department provided that the applications reach the department on or before Oct 25.

This arrangement will give employers sufficient time to send the signed contracts to the Immigration Department for completion of the necessary application procedures.

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However, the helpers’ food allowance will remain unchanged, at not less than HK$1,236 per month.

Under the law, employers must provide their helpers with free food or pay them a food allowance. At present, the vast majority of employers provide free food to the helpers.

Currently, around 356,000 foreign domestic helpers are working in the city.

The government reviews the minimum allowable wage for foreign domestic helpers regularly. The last time the government increased the helpers' minimum wage was in September last year, when it was raised by 3 percent to HK$4,870, while the food allowance was raised by HK$40.

“In accordance with the established mechanism, in this year's review, we have carefully considered Hong Kong's general economic and labor market conditions over the past year, as well as Hong Kong's near-term economic outlook,” said a government spokesman.  

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Taking into account these factors, the affordability of employers and the livelihood of the foreign domestic helpers, the government has decided to adjust the minimum allowable wage, added the spokesman.

The minimum wage for other workers in Hong Kong remained unchanged this year at HK$40 an hour.