Working hours

Working hours

From Kompas

Recently the government issued a Presidential Decree Keppres No. 68/1995 concerning the new working hours for government institutions. The decree stipulates that government offices open at 7:30 (it used to be 8:00). This new time schedule is hard for the civil servants, particularly those who work in Jakarta.

As we all know, with the continuous growth of office buildings in Jakarta, many office workers choose to live outside Jakarta. They have to travel one to two hours to get to their place of work by public transportation. This means that the civil servants have to leave home much earlier without caring for breakfast. The situation is even worse for a working couple.

The first thing the employees do as soon as they arrive at the office is to get something to eat in the office canteen or food stalls nearby. They obviously have to increase their budget for meals, while their salaries remain the same. Under these circumstances, in all probability, their work ethic will further decline.

Bearing this situation in mind, it would wise for the government to review the office time schedule in Jakarta. The old practice (8:00 to 16:30) is more convenient, with a break of 45 minutes for lunch.

Name and address

known to editor