Unfair to make non-office govt workers do 45-hour shifts: Guan Eng

It is unfair to expect non-office government workers to work 45 hours a week, an increase from 42 hours, DAP national chairperson Lim Guan Eng said today.

The measure, which takes effect on Dec 1, will increase work discrepancies between office and non-office government workers, Lim told a press conference in Parliament.

Senator Dr RA Lingeshwaran, who accompanied Lim, said the matter should be studied fully before any measure is implemented.

“We are requesting this for this group, which I think (comprises) more than 100,000 workers who will be affected,” Lim added.

Lingeshwaran clarified that more than 77,000 nurses will be affected.

However, besides the healthcare sector, the measure will affect other critical sectors such as emergency services and security, he added.

The directive was issued under the Civil Service Remuneration System (SSPA).

Bigger challenges

Lingeshwaran said in comparison, office government workers are expected to work 38 hours a week.

He also said that non-office workers have a markedly different work environment with bigger challenges.

“In the example of nurses, they must look after patients and usually do not get to sit and rest because they must continuously provide care the entire time,” he said.

Besides that, husbands and wives who work shifts face other issues such as being forced to spend more on childcare and having less time to spend with their families, he added.

Lingeshwaran was previously the director of the Sungai Bakap Hospital in Penang.

Lim said he would write to the Chief Secretary to the Government Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar about the matter.

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