Civil servants in some Malaysian states to enjoy flexible working hours from March
27 February, 2019
Civil servants working at federal departments in some Malaysia states will get flexible working hours as part of a pilot programme starting on Friday (Mar 1), the country’s Public Service Department (PSD) announced on Monday.
The pilot programme applies to those working office hours and excludes those working in the public service, schools and education institutions, statutory boards, local authorities and health facilities, according to a circular posted on Facebook.
From Monday to Friday, eligible civil servants in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Perak, Sabah, Sarawak and Perlis can start work between 7.30am and 8.30am and leave between 4.30pm and 5.30pm, as long as they complete nine hours of work that day.
The same flexible working hours, which include break times, apply to eligible civil servants in the states of Johor and Terengganu, from Sunday to Wednesday. On Thursday, they are allowed to leave between 3pm and 4pm, as long as they have completed seven-and-a-half hours of work.
As part of the pilot programme, expecting parents are also allowed to leave work an hour early.
Department heads are responsible for keeping track of employees participating in the pilot to ensure they obey the rules, PSD said. A form has to be filled up each month, with details of participating employees' working hours and reasons for being late.
The programme is being implemented following a meeting by the public sector reform review committee on Feb 12, PSD added. Malaysia will announce when the pilot programme ends at a later date.