The Legislative Council on Thursday passed a motion urging the government to reform the civil service system to boost effectiveness, with some lawmakers calling for a new way to measure civil servants’ performance.

Lawmaker Connie Lam expressed dissatisfaction, saying there was a shortage of anti-epidemic workers amid the coronavirus outbreak while many civil servants were allowed to work from home.

She noted that civil servants are set to receive pay rises even though many citizens are disappointed with their performance.

Lam said it shows the mechanism is “ridiculous” and needs to be revamped.

Another lawmaker Kitson Yang said without a reward and punishment system, some civil servants will not care about the quality of their work.

He said a set of key performance indicators should be introduced to determine whether civil servants are eligible for pay rises and promotions.

However, legislator Chau Siu-chung said the efficiency of the Hong Kong government is internationally acclaimed thanks to the contribution of its civil servants.

He said it’s unfair to only blame civil servants for the government’s shortcomings.

In response, the Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip agreed that the management of civil servants should be kept up with the times.

He stressed that a fair mechanism is in place to choose the most suitable candidates for promotion. He said the government would study how to improve their job appraisals.

Meanwhile, he noted that in the past five years, more than 1,000 civil servants had been punished over crimes or serious misconduct, more than 150 of whom have been fired.