China Raises Salaries of Civil Servants to Boost Spending

Move Seen as Attempt to Bolster Consumer Confidence Amid Slowing Economy, Deflation

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China has awarded a range of civil servants across the nation their first significant pay rise in years, according to people familiar with the matter, as policymakers try to boost morale and spur spending.

The basic salaries of many government employees have been bolstered by at least 500 yuan (S$93) a month, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing sensitive matters. That wage hike has been backdated to July, they said.

The percentage increases varied depending on the base salary, with one of the people saying it amounted to a raise of roughly 5 per cent.

China last publicly hiked civil servants' wages in 2015, when some 40 million people got an average lift of 300 yuan a month.

Social media users suggested that salaries were also boosted in 2018 and 2021, but the government never confirmed the hikes and the percentage increases are unclear.

The Communist Party of China has not made a public announcement on the December wage hikes, making it hard to determine the scope of the programme or who will foot the bill.

But the unexpected hike extends to teachers, policemen and bureaucrats from around the nation of 1.4 billion people, the people said.