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Four-Day Work Week Implements by Indonesian Ministry After Successful Pilot Program

Four-Day Work Week Implements by Indonesian Ministry After Successful Pilot Program
Photo by Headway on Unsplash

The Indonesian Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) has officially introduced a four-day work week scheme for eligible employees after a pilot project launched in June last year showed positive results.

This initiative, titled the Compressed Work Schedule, allows employees who have completed a total of 40 working hours to take up to two additional days off per month.

The scheme is voluntary and still requires approval, as explained by Deputy Minister of SOEs for Human Resource Management, Tedi Bharata. He emphasized that this flexibility is designed for those seeking to try a more efficient work pattern without compromising productivity.

Employees who do not meet the 40-hour weekly requirement will continue to follow the regular five-day work schedule.

Four-Day Work Week, Limited Scope

However, the four-day work week scheme is currently limited to employees within the Ministry of SOEs and has not yet been implemented in companies under the ministry’s supervision.

Deputy Minister Tedi Bharata stated that the program is still in the evaluation phase to assess its effectiveness before potentially expanding it to state-owned enterprises.

While no official rollout timeline has been disclosed, the government aims to ensure the scheme operates optimally before applying it on a broader scale.

Mental Health Drives Work Reform

In March last year, Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Erick Thohir emphasized that this program aims to reduce employee stress and improve work-life balance, considering that 70% of the younger generation faces mental health challenges that affect productivity.

An internal survey conducted by the ministry also revealed a high level of employee interest in work flexibility.

Beyond the SOE sector, a similar idea emerged in Jakarta. Pramono Anung, a member of the governor’s transition team, once supported the proposal for a four-day work week for workers in the capital.

However, Ima Mahdiah, head of the transition team, clarified that the idea was merely a personal opinion expressed by Nirwana Joga, an urban planning expert, and not an official policy currently under discussion.

Four-Day Week: A Global Trend

The four-day work week trend has been expanding globally in the post-pandemic era. Belgium became the first European Union country to legalize this system in March 2022, allowing employees to choose between a four- or five-day work week with adjusted working hours.

In Asia, several cities in Japan have started piloting similar schemes. The Japanese government has already implemented this system for employees with special responsibilities, such as caregiving, and plans to expand it to all workers by April 2025.

In Indonesia, this system has been adopted by several startups, including Alami (a sharia fintech company), Bolt (an e-commerce platform), and Kickstarter (a crowdfunding platform), reflecting the private sector’s growing interest in work flexibility.

Tags: work

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