Regarding Working Hours, Airlangga: We Will Follow Labour Protection Regulations

The Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, has responded to a proposal from employers regarding increasing weekly working hours to 45 hours, up from the current 40 hours.

“I believe we have already agreed on 40 hours (per week). If it is 45 hours (per week), then we must follow the labour protection regulations,” stated Minister Airlangga when met in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Previously, the Indonesian Footwear Association (Aprisindo) proposed increasing working hours to 45 hours per week. An Aprisindo representative, Hariyanto, stated on Wednesday (30/9) that this follows his assessment that Indonesia lags behind Vietnam in terms of working hours, where they reach 48 hours per week.

“Currently, we are losing in terms of working hours; 48 hours a week in Vietnam, whereas we are at 40 hours. From that alone, we are already 20 per cent behind. Therefore, we wish to propose increasing the working hours to 45 hours,” said Hariyanto.

The current regulations regarding working hours in Indonesia are stipulated in Law Number 11 of 2020 concerning Job Creation (the Job Creation Law). Under this law, there are two applicable working hour schemes for companies in Indonesia.

The first is 7 working hours per day or 40 hours per week, applicable for a 6-day work week with one day off. The second scheme is 8 working hours per day or 40 hours per week, applicable for a 5-day work week with two days off.

Meanwhile, the government has approved the Labour Protection Bill (RUU Pelindungan Ketenagakerjaan) to proceed to the Second Level Discussion stage with the House of Representatives (DPR RI) on Monday (5/10).

The Minister of Manpower, Yassierli, stated that the government believes the Labour Protection Bill, as a whole, strengthens labour protection for workers, job seekers, apprentices, and employers alike. Furthermore, he noted that the Bill also strengthens the oversight system and the legal approach to labour to ensure it is more effective, professional, and proportional, providing legal certainty while maintaining the sustainability of the business world.