Hong Kong’s lowest-paid workers are set to receive a pay rise of HK$1 per hour, from the current HK$42.10 (US$5.40) to HK$43.10, as recommended by the government’s top decision-making body, with the new rate expected to come into force as early as May.

The government announced on Tuesday that the Executive Council had adopted the proposal from the Minimum Wage Commission (MWC), which had suggested the 2.38 per cent increase.

The amendment will be tabled in the legislature on February 25. Subject to the Legislative Council’s approval, the new rate will take effect on May 1. It is the second adjustment since a new formula for calculating the rate was passed in 2024.

Under the first adjustment last year, the statutory minimum wage (SMW) was increased by HK$2.10, from HK$40 to HK$42.10.

Commission chairwoman Priscilla Wong Pui-sze said the body had discussed the implementation arrangements for adopting the formula, examined the data for each indicator and assessed the effects.

“The MWC believes that the new SMW rate can maintain an appropriate balance between forestalling excessively low wages and minimising the loss of low-paid jobs, while giving due regard to sustaining Hong Kong’s economic growth and competitiveness,” she said.