Social Affairs Minister Sanctions 2,708 Civil Servants for Absence on First Day Back at Work
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul) conducted a surprise inspection on the first working day after the collective Eid al-Fitr holiday leave, Wednesday (25/3/2026). Gus Ipul toured the Ministry of Social Affairs (Kemensos) offices, greeting and engaging with the staff present at work.
In addition to inspecting the attending employees, Gus Ipul and the ministry’s leadership had previously held a service meeting to review staff discipline following the extended holiday. In that meeting, Gus Ipul learned that out of a total of 46,090 Ministry of Social Affairs employees, 2,708 were reported absent without any explanation.
“So, these are cases without any notice or permission, and they also did not clock in. There are 2,708 employees in this category, which is quite significant. Of course, the Secretary General along with the staff will investigate why they are without explanation,” said Gus Ipul at the Ministry of Social Affairs office, as quoted in a Kemensos release on Thursday (27/3/2026).
It is known that all Civil Servants (ASN) working under the Ministry of Social Affairs currently number 46,090. Of that number, 3,683 work from the office (work from office), 5,071 work from anywhere (work from anywhere), 34,284 employees work under a flexible working arrangement system (working with flexibility in time and location), and the remaining 2,708 employees are without explanation.
Upon discovering the large number of employees absent without explanation on the first day back after Eid, Gus Ipul immediately followed up by organising a disciplinary briefing roll call for those 2,708 employees. The employees who committed the indiscipline are required to attend either in person or online to receive direct guidance.
“Therefore, the 2,708 individuals whose names and ID numbers have all been recorded are required to attend tomorrow’s roll call at 10 a.m. as part of the briefing for those who did not attend today without explanation,” said Gus Ipul.
In addition to the disciplinary briefing, Gus Ipul did not hesitate to impose sanctions on employees who were absent. These sanctions, of course, comply with Government Regulation No. 94 of 2021 on the Discipline of Civil Servants (PNS), which regulates obligations, prohibitions, and firm sanctions for PNS who violate the rules.
“So, the punishments can be light disciplinary punishment, moderate disciplinary punishment, or severe disciplinary punishment. We need to convey this, and it also serves as a lesson for all employees in the Ministry of Social Affairs environment that we have oversight and tools to measure the level of discipline of employees in the Ministry of Social Affairs environment,” emphasised Gus Ipul.
He added that besides sanctions in the form of warnings, sanctions could also include deductions from performance allowances for employees proven to be undisciplined in attendance. Employees who are absent will have their performance allowance cut by 3% per day of absence.
Gus Ipul also explained that violations before and after the holiday are not only about employee attendance but also the high risk of receiving holiday gratifications.
On the same occasion, he stated that to date, there have been no reports of gratifications received by Ministry of Social Affairs employees. Currently, Kemensos has provided a complaint channel for gratifications, and there have been no gratification reports.
To support the enforcement of discipline among Ministry of Social Affairs employees, Gus Ipul invited all parties to report any Kemensos employees proven to have committed violations. Reporting can be done through the Command Center or other available complaint channels.
“I invite all parties if they see or witness such matters (violations) in the Ministry of Social Affairs environment, please report directly to us through our command centre, our WhatsApp centre, or the channels we have established,” concluded Gus Ipul.