The Federation of Hong Kong and Kowloon Labour Unions on Tuesday urged bosses to give their workers a raise of 5.5 percent next year.

The group noted its recent survey of more than 1,100 workers showed that more than six out of ten interviewees got an average pay rise of 4.5 percent this year, while most of the rest saw their salaries frozen.

Over half of all respondents said they were unhappy with the salary adjustment, and over 70 percent think their pay should be adjusted based on inflation, the group said.

The federation’s chairman Lam Chun-sing said the group had scaled back its expectations compared to last year after looking at factors such as inflation, the business situation and economic growth.

“We suggest a salary increase of 5.5 percent, which is a little bit lower than last year because last year we suggested an increase of six percent,” he said.

“Because last year the inflation was much higher than this year and also this year some of the sectors also face some challenges because of the economic situation.”

Lam noted while the transportation sector saw bigger salary increases, some employees in industries like construction and catering faced a salary freeze.

"I think this is because of the economic situation... Also for the construction industry, some private construction projects are also delayed.”