The final phase of Hong Kong Government's five-day week initiative will begin on July 1, involving 10,500 civil servants, the Civil Service Bureau said Monday.

By then, about 94,300 staff will be on a five-day week work mode, including a 'five-day-work, two-day-off' duty pattern.

However, 51,200 civil servants may still have to continue with their current work patterns. They are mainly engaged in the provision of services, including social welfare, immigration counter, cultural, postal, and environmental hygiene services, along with law enforcement, passenger and cargo clearance, and penal operations.

Departments can continue to explore the feasibility of allowing more front-line staff to work at a five-day-work, two-day-off schedule, provided that service is unaffected, the bureau said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 22, 2007)