Shorter working hours for women in civil service under consideration

The government is considering shorter working hours for female employees under the Civil Service Remuneration Scheme, announced Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

“I will discuss with the Chief Secretary to the Government and the Director-General of the Public Service to provide flexibility even with slightly lower salaries.

“For example, instead of the usual working hours from 8am to 5pm, if they work for maybe four hours, the pay rate might be lower, but we can utilise women who feel pressured to take care of their children at home,” he said in his speech at the International Women’s Day Celebration 2024 last night.

He added that if the above plan is implemented, Malaysia would be a pioneer in providing such working facility for female civil servants.

He added that the time has a come to rethink ways of ensuring women retain their careers while taking care of their families.

Anwar also instructed Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri to select 100 female figures from various fields to receive a special fund of RM50,000 each for programmes related to the group.

“With this special fund, they can utilise it to organise activities or groups that are not necessarily tied to a party or association, using this fund to find ways or channels to enhance women’s activities,” he said, reported The Star.