Working One Hour a Week Does Not Count as Unemployment: BPS Explains

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia — Statistics Indonesia (BPS) says that people who undertake informal work for one hour a week are counted as employed in labour statistics.

BPS Deputy for Statistical Balance and Analysis Moh Edy Mahmud explained that someone is still classified as employed if they perform at least one hour of work in a week to earn income.

“Someone who has been laid off by a company and then switches to informal work, or works fewer hours, is still recorded as employed as long as they meet the minimum threshold of one hour of work in a week,” Edy said at a BPS press conference, as quoted on Monday (9 November 2026).

Edy said the definition of working for at least one hour a week is not new. BPS follows an international standard set by the International Labour Organization (ILO), which remains in use today.

“The concept of an employed person is someone who carries out work to help earn income for at least one hour in a week. This is an international concept from the ILO: working for one hour a week places someone in the employed category,” he said.

According to data from the August 2026 National Labour Force Survey (Sakernas), people working for only one hour a week accounted for 0.2% of all employed people.

BPS also said on its official Instagram account that adopting an international standard does not mean ignoring realities on the ground; it ensures that Indonesian data remain globally comparable.

BPS divides employed people into three groups according to their working hours: full-time workers, part-time workers and underemployed workers.

In its August 2026 report on Indonesia’s employment situation, BPS defined full-time workers as people who work 35 hours or more a week. They made up the largest share of employed people, at 67.47% in August 2026.

Part-time workers are those who work fewer than 35 hours a week but are not seeking, or available to accept, additional work. They accounted for 23.85% in August 2026. The third category is underemployment.

This group comprises people who work fewer than 35 hours a week but are still seeking, or available to accept, additional work. They accounted for 8.68% in August 2026.

A person working one hour a week is classified as underemployed if they are still willing to accept or seeking additional work. According to BPS, the group’s average working time is 19.7 hours a week. Although some may work for only one hour in a given week, the group’s average hours can be higher.