Starting Pay in Civil Service and Yearly Bonuses

Many young graduates who are seriously considering joining the civil service are likely curious to find out what is the starting pay or salary in one of the Ministries.

Reading in some forums, there are anonymous people who claim that they are receiving $4k starting salary.  In one of the forums, a female with first class honours claims that her starting pay when she joined was around $3400.

Just for a more accurate picture, im a female, almost 2 years in CS, NTU FCH, in a ministry not listed above.
2015 Sep - MX13 $34XX
2016 Sep - MX13 $36XX
2017 Apr - MX13 $37XX (after Apr increment), will likely be promoted to MX12 after i hit my 2 year mark.

The civil service has a salary range for the various grades.  A fresh graduate will enter at the grade known as MX13.  The common standard is for them to stay at this grade for 1-2 years before they are promoted to MX12.  To take care of merit increment for these people who have been in the job grade for a few years, the salary range of MX13 thus varies.  

Depending on whether one has completed NS obligations or not (Singapore males), the starting pay will then be adjusted accordingly.

Few years back, I posted on the starting pay for a fresh graduate.  The median salary was around $3400 for a fresh university graduate in Singapore.  The civil service often tries to pay a competitive salary so it will not be an anomaly for a fresh graduate to earn a starting pay around that region.

Back in 2011, I also published what was salary range for civil servants.  The starting salary range was $2800 for MX13 and that was 10 years back.  Right now, one can expect the starting salary to be much higher. So the starting salary for a fresh graduate will be minimally $3000 based on current estimates.

And how much bonuses does a civil servant get? Well, the pay structure is quite complicated.  But based on open source information, there are the following bonuses paid out:

1.   Mid-year bonus (Annual Variable Component) = Usually 0.5 month bonus
2.   Year-end bonus (Annual Variable Component) = A range from 0.25 to 0.75 months
3.   Year-end 13th month bonus (Non Pensionable Annual Allowance) = Standard of 1 month bonus
4.   Once off bonuses = Varies
5.  Performance bonus = ranges from 2-3 months depending on performance grade and job grade 

13th month bonus is guaranteed.  So everyone will definitely get 1 month bonus.  

Mid-year bonus and year-end bonus can vary quite a bit.  Have compiled the bonuses that was paid out by the civil service for the past few years.  Do note that the bonuses paid out at year end includes at least the 13th month bonus (standard minimum of 1 month of salary) and a AVC bonus that varies.  The AVC bonus is paid out in July (what is commonly called the mid-year bonus) and in December (together with the 13th month bonus, what is commonly called the year-end bonus).

At times there are minimum caps to the AVC bonus so that a minimum quantum is paid out for lower wage civil servants.  For fresh graduates, this is probably not relevant since their AVC bonus will usually be higher than the minimum quantum set.

2011

Mid-year bonus = 0.5 months + $250 cash quantum

Year-end bonus+ 13 month = 1.75

Total for 2011 = 2.25 months + $250 cash quantum

2012

Mid-year bonus = 0.3 months

Year-end bonus + 13 month = 1.7

Total for 2012 = 2 months bonus

2013

Mid-year bonus = 0.4 months

Year-end bonus + 13 month = 2.1 months

Total for 2013 = 2.5 months

2014

Mid-year bonus - 0.5 months

Year-end bonus + 13 month = 1.8 months

Total for 2014 = 2.3 months

2015

Mid-year bonus = 0.5 months

Year end bonus + 13 month = 1.65 months

Total for 2015 = 2.15 months

2016

Mid-year bonus = 0.45 months

Year end bonus + 13 month = 1.5 months

Total for 2016 = 1.95 months

2017

Mid-year bonus = 0.5 months

Year end bonus + 13 month = 2 months

Total for 2017 = 2.5 months

2018

Mid-year bonus = 0.5 months + $300 ($500 for lower wage)

Year end bonus + 13 month = 2 months

Total for 2018 = 2.5 months + $300

2019 (Bad year due to economic downturn)

Mid-year bonus = 0.45 months

Year end bonus + 13 month = 1.1 months + once-off payment of $250 to $1,500

Total for 2019 = 1.55 months + once-off payment of $250 to $1,500

2020 (Worst year ever due to Covid 19)

Mid-year bonus = None paid out

Year end bonus + 13 month = 1 month + once-off payment of $1,200 (lump sum only for low wage civil servants)

Total for 2020 = 1 month 

Well, not to fret for fresh graduates.  There is still a performance bonus that is paid out every year too.  This usually ranges and an average performer at MX13 can expect around 2 months bonus.   Note that there are civil servants (high potential or scholars) that do get additional bonuses too.  Fresh graduates probably don't qualify for these.

Civil Service Bonus for 2020

Straits Times reported lately that civil servants will not be getting a year end bonus this year due to Covid 19.  There was also no mid-year bonus paid out.

Civil servants received a one off payment of 0.25 months which was capped at $750 as well as their 13th month bonus.  This year, senior civil servants also had a pay cut of 0.5 to 1 month according to their seniority.

Not all gloom and doom though.  Civil servants still enjoy a performance bonus that is outside of the mid-year and year-end bonus.  An average performer should get around 3 months worth of performance bonus according to anonymous feedback in various forums.  So taking that into account, civil servant's annual pay package for this year should be around 16 months of monthly salary.  That is assuming one is an average performer.

Interested in civil service payscale? Check out this link here https://sgfinancialfreedom.blogspot.com/2015/10/singapore-civil-service-pay-scale.html

MHA Bonus?

Singapore Civil Service - Declaration of Indebtedness and Financial Embarrassment

Civil servants or public officers in Singapore are expected to declare their financial standing when they first join and every year thereafter or whenever their  unsecured financial liabilities exceed 3 months salary.

This declaration of indebtedness is meant to ensure that civil servants remain of good financial standing and helps the Public Service know whether an officer becomes vulnerable due to financial embarrassment.  The intention is meant to protect the officer (and by extension the Public Service) and is not meant to penalise the officer.

An officer is considered to be financially embarrassed if he or she has defaulted in repayment of loans, credit facilities and liabilities for 3 consecutive months.

Other situations where one is financially embarrassed also include being an undischarged bankrupt or where one takes a loan outside certain categories.

So this means that if one has not been making payments for credit card bills for 3 months consecutively, one will be considered financially embarrassed.  Or if one has borrowed from a money lender,  one will also be considered financially embarrassed.

So a civil servant must be careful to take only secured loans like housing or car loans. Other loans such as education loan, renovation loan is also allowed.  Unsecured loans like balance transfer or credit cards must be capped at 3 months salary.

A civil servant who is financially embarrassed must declare.


Check out other posts related to the civil service:

1. Civil Service Bonus for 2020

2. Civil Service Payscale

3. Credit Checks and Credit Bureau in Singapore (Bet you did not know that your credit report is actually available and compiled by certain agencies)

Civil servants in Singapore, like anyone else, can experience financial difficulties due to a variety of reasons, such as job loss, medical expenses, or overspending. While the job security and steady income that comes with being a civil servant may provide some financial stability, it is still important to practice good financial management and plan for unexpected events.

To avoid financial embarrassment, civil servants in Singapore can take the following steps:

Budgeting: Create a budget and stick to it, to ensure that expenses do not exceed income. This can help to avoid overspending and build up savings for unexpected events.

Debt Management: If necessary, seek help to manage debt and prioritize repayments.

Savings: Build up emergency savings to cover unexpected expenses, such as job loss or medical expenses.

Investment: Consider investing in diversified portfolios to grow wealth over the long term.

Financial Planning: Seek professional advice to develop a comprehensive financial plan that takes into account one's current financial situation, goals, and risk tolerance.

In conclusion, financial embarrassment can have a negative impact on personal and professional lives. Civil servants in Singapore, like anyone else, should be concerned about financial embarrassment and take steps to avoid it, such as budgeting, debt management, savings, investment, and financial planning.

Singapore Civil Service Pay Scale

Trying to compile the salary pay scale for the Singapore civil service.  Somehow, I only managed to find the figures for 2011.  There are probably updated figures for 2015 so I will post it in due time.  Do bookmark this post. Or if anyone has the latest figures, do drop a comment and let me know.


These are the figures for 2011 Civil Service Salary Range

Job grade: MX9 (Superscale)
Job title: Deputy Director, Director
Pay scale: S$10,580 – S$14,550 / S$14,551 – S$16,540

Job grade: MX10
Job title: Assistant Director, Deputy Director
Pay scale: S$6,350 – S$9,050 / S$9,051 – S$10,400

Job grade: MX11
Job title: Manager, Assistant Director
Pay scale: S$4,100 – S$6,160 / S$6,161 – S$7,190

Job grade: MX12
Job title: Assistant Manager, Manager
Pay scale: S$2,550 – S$5,130

Job grade: MX13
Job title: Management Executive
Pay scale: up to S$2,800 for fresh graduates

The salary ranges indicate the basic monthly wages that a civil servant may earn, and the figures exclude the potential value of civil service bonuses. Based on past newspaper reports, bonuses for an average civil servant could range from more than 2 months to 4 months inclusive of AWS (annual wage supplement), depending on the performance of the economy and individual performance.

In 2012, there was a pay revision of around 10% for MX12 and MX13, and 5% for MX10 and MX11.

In August 2014, it was announced that most civil servants would get a pay raise of around 5%.

In 2015 (Singapore's jubilee year), civil servants also received a once off SG50 bonus of $500.

Mid-Year Bonus as announced by PSD
2016 - 0.45 months
2015 - 0.5 months
2014 - 0.5 months

Career Progression (non-scholars)
Promotion is based on both performance as well as potential. During every annual appraisal, supervisors would grade their employees based on both performance as well as potential. Word on the street is that performance ranking is according to certain bands and one would usually need two "Bs" to get promoted.  Performance grade also determines the performance bonus one gets.  A higher performance grade gives you a higher performance bonus.

A fresh graduate usually enters in at MX13 pay scale.

Promotion from a MX13 to MX12 is usually after one year of service. A typical officer can then be expected to be promoted to MX11 after two years (though some might take a little longer).

There are usually no managerial responsibilities for a MX11 officer. Promotion to MX10 is slightly more difficult and is dependent on performance as well as potential.  A MX10 officer will usually have managerial responsibilities.

Most non-scholar civil servants can expect to end their careers at the MX10 or even MX9 pay scale.

Video below by Lim Swee Say on why Civil Servants need not be ashamed of drawing a high salary:

 

Check out other posts related to the civil service:

1. Civil Service Bonus for 2020

2. Civil Service Declaration of Indebtedness