Indonesia’s Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises has officially rolled out its four-day work week initiative to interested employees following the success of a pilot project that began in June last year. Known as the Compressed Work Schedule, the voluntary programme allows employees of the ministry who meet the 40-hour work requirement the option to work four days a week. They are able to do so up to twice a month.
“So, if someone is working for 40 hours in a week, they can opt for the four-day work week within the same week. It’s available for those who want it, but it requires approval,” Tedi Bharata – who is the Deputy Minister for Human Resource Management, Technology, and Information – told CNN Indonesia. He did not reveal when the initiative was rolled out. If the 40-hour weekly threshold is not met, employees will continue to follow the traditional five-day work schedule. Currently, the initiative is only applicable to staff members at the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises and has not been extended to firms under the ministry’s purview. Tedi further noted that the four-day work week initiative is still being evaluated for its effectiveness before it could potentially be expanded to firms under the purview of the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises. The Jakarta Globe in November reported that there were 47 state-owned enterprises in the country, though there are plans to reduce the number to just 30. It remains unclear whether the four-day work week initiative will be extended to other Indonesian government ministries.
Globally, more countries and firms have adopted a four-day work week in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Belgium became the first European Union country to implement a law permitting a four-day work week which came into effect in March 2022. In Asia, several cities in Japan have also begun to pilot a four-day work week initiative. Meanwhile in Indonesia, the four-day work week has primarily been adopted by startups, including Syariah-compliant fintech company Alami, e-commerce platform Bolt, and crowdfunding platform Kickstarter.
CNA
