Hong Kong civil servants to get hourly leave but businesses unlikely to follow

Hong Kong civil servants may soon enjoy hourly family care leave, as the government aims to boost birth rates, according to the South China Morning Post. The policy, announced in Wednesday's policy address, would allow employees to take leave by the hour for personal matters like hospital visits or parent-teacher meetings. Civil servants could receive an annual entitlement of 10 to 12 hours, starting in early 2027, according to Tsoi Koon-lung, president of the Hong Kong Chinese Civil Servants' Association.

Business leaders, however, doubt the private sector will follow suit, citing manpower and financial constraints, particularly for smaller firms. Ngan Man-him, vice-chairman of the Hong Kong Federation of Civil Service Unions, suggested the government should monitor the effectiveness of the new leave. Labour sector lawmaker Lam Chun-sing believed the measure could encourage young civil servants to start families.

However, Danny Lau of the Hong Kong Small and Medium Enterprises Association warned that even with government subsidies, smaller businesses would still struggle to implement the policy due to staffing and financial limitations.