Lifeguard service contracts for public pools rose 8%, sparking concern

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department is outsourcing the lifesaving and first aid services for six public swimming pools under a 120 million-dollar contract for three years. The cost is some 8% higher than the previous contract, sparking concerns among some lawmakers.

Manpower crunch among lifeguards has long plagued various public swimming pools. To address that, the LCSD began outsourcing six indoor swimming pools in East Hong Kong Island and Tai Kok Tsui in 2024.

In July that year, a public tender was held where Spotlight Enterprises won the bid. The two-plus-year service period came with a price tag of more than 75 million dollars -- averaging 38 million dollars per year. This year, Spotlight Enterprises secured the bid again -- now for a three-year contract at 123 million dollars with the annual fee raised to about 41 million dollars, marking a hike of about 8%.

Those six swimming pools are said to require 109 lifeguards at their peak, with each one earning 31,000 dollars per month. But the LCSD earlier told LegCo the pools require only 68 lifeguards which entail an average monthly salary of more than 50,000 dollars.

However, senior lifeguards under the civil service only receive a maximum of 26,590 dollars per month.

The Hong Kong & Kowloon Lifeguards' Union says the exorbitant cost could be a waste of public money, noting manpower crunch only occurs during the peak summer season and does not require year-round tenders.

New People's Party lawmaker Adrian Ho says the root cause is likely a lack of promotion opportunities and benefits among lifeguards. As tender costs will likely rise further, he urges the government consider giving senior lifeguards opportunities to be promoted to pool management positions with more overtime benefits to retain staff.