Austerity: Govt turns up the heat, raises aircond temps, to relax dress code

The government has decided to raise air-conditioning temperatures in all its offices as part of austerity measures and to cut down on energy spending.

MACC chief Azam Baki revealed that the cabinet made such a decision during a media engagement session with the Multi-Agency Task Force at MACC headquarters in Putrajaya this morning.

“Referring to the cabinet order, the air-conditioning temperature will be raised, and maybe we will be allowed to wear more casual clothes to work, because temperatures will be raised - so wear short sleeves and so on,” he said.

However, this is not limited to the MACC.

Malaysiakini received confirmation from staffers at two ministries that the air-conditioning temperature order will be applied across the government.

It is understood that the office temperature will be set at around 24°C.

Not a new policy

The government actually has a policy on air-conditioning temperature since 2011, which is supposed to be no lower than 24°C.

However, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, who previously held the natural resources, energy and climate change portfolio from 2022 to 2023, told Malaysiakini today that compliance was an issue.

In 2023, the Madani administration allowed civil servants to wear batik shirts to work every day to make the temperature policy ruling more bearable.

The latest austerity measure comes amid global supply chain issues caused by the Iran war, which has led to an increase in the price of coal and natural gas, both of which Malaysia imports a significant amount for electricity generation.

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Yesterday, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced that federal ministries, government agencies, statutory bodies, and government-linked bodies will implement work-from-home policies beginning April 15 to reduce fuel consumption and ensure a sustainable energy supply.

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