Directors of government departments will soon be making as much as 70 to 75 thousand patacas (US$9 – 9,500)  each month, an increase of 27 to 36 per cent on current wages.

Chief Executive Edmund Ho Hau Wah mentioned the salary rise during his policy address at the Legislative Assembly last year.

However, it isn’t an easy topic, the local radio station said, as it has been hard to reach a consensus on giving these directors a pay rise.

On the one hand there are those who defend the pay rise, while on the other hand, there are those who say the government should not give such high pay rises.

According to Radio Macau, it is recognised that directors and top officials in government departments need a better pay “in order to avoid them from leaving to the public sector, mainly the gaming industries, which continue offering higher wages than those in the public sector.”

Secretary for Administration and Justice, Florinda da Rosa Silva Chan, promised in April to present a proposal reviewing pay rises, before the end of the year, after lawmaker Jose Pereira Coutinho contested a 50 per cent pay rise for government directors.

However, last November, during his policy address, Edmund Ho said the rise corresponded to 7.2 per cent, an increase from 55 to 59 points on the index table.