Category: civil servants

In China, Government Jobs No Longer Mean ‘A Solid Rice Bowl’

A city once known as one of China’s most robust has gone viral for a financial crisis that has left essential city workers without paychecks. Netizens are buzzing about its failure to pay public employees—for over six months, and in some cases, for more than a year. Meanwhile, residents say that their city is just…


Civil Servants’ Resignations Intensify in Hong Kong, a Record High Since 1997

After the anti-extradition movement and the implementation of the compulsory oath of allegiance for civil servants, the wave of civil servants leaving the organization in Hong Kong intensified. In its latest reply to Legco members’ questions on the “Budget 2023-24,” the Civil Service Bureau revealed that the number of resignations in 2021-22 has reached a…


Environment Canada Suspended 1 Percent of Unvaccinated Federal Workers: Internal Audit

Canada’s Department of Environment placed the 1 percent of its employees who were unvaccinated on leave, an internal audit shows. Meanwhile, “the vast majority, 99 percent, attested as being fully vaccinated,” said the audit, obtained by Blacklock’s Reporter. Of the 8,530 employees at Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), a total of 89, or 1…


Around 100,000 UK Civil Servants Vote for Strike Action

The UK government is facing “sustained industrial action” by civil servants after around 100,000 union members working for the civil service voted to strike in a dispute over pay, pensions, and jobs. The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) said on Nov. 10 that the legal threshold for industrial action had been reached in 126…


Required to Pledge Allegiance by Oath, 129 Public Servants and 535 Contractors Have Left the Government Last Year

Over a hundred (129 to be exact) Hong Kong civil servants and 535 non-civil servant government employees have left or resigned last year, refusing to comply with the newly introduced oath-taking declaration-signing requirement by the Hong Kong government. The Hong Kong government requires civil servants to take an oath or sign a declaration of allegiance to the…


UK Government Wants to Cut up to 91,000 Civil Service Jobs in 3 Years

The British government intends to cut up to 91,000 civil service jobs—almost a fifth of the current total—within three years, the UK’s top civil servant has said. In a letter to civil servants, Cabinet Secretary Simon Case said the government aims to return to 2016 staffing levels, as the number of civil servants has grown…


Hong Kong Civil Servants Resign, Recruits to be Tested on National Security Law

With the latest figures showing that the number of Hong Kong civil servant resignations at an all time high, the Hong Kong government is further strengthening its ideological control over civil servant with its announcement that starting July 1, 2022, a test on the National Security Law will be part of its recruitment of civil…


Hong Kong Asks Civil Servants to Work From Home as COVID-19 Cases Hit 18-month High

Hong Kong has asked civil servants to work from home “as far as possible” to rein COVID-19, a day after the Asian financial hub recorded a sudden surge in case numbers. The city reported 140 new infections on Jan. 23 during the height of the fifth COVID-19 wave—a record high in almost 18 months since…


Minister Rejects Call for Pay Cut for Stay-at-Home Civil Servants

A call for civil servants who refuse to return to their desks in Whitehall to have their pay cut has been rejected by a Cabinet minister. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said he would like to see officials in his department going into the office two or three days a week. However, during a round of…


Minister Admits Just 25 Percent of Department’s Civil Servants Are Back in Office

Only about 25 percent of staff in one government department are currently in the office on any one day, a minister has said, despite the Chancellor advocating the benefits of young people returning to the workplace. Gillian Keegan, minister for apprenticeships and skills, gave the estimate for the Department for Education when asked on Times…