CSC requests to extend break time for civil servants

Civil Service Commission (CSC) has requested the President’s Offices to extend the existing 45-minute break time for civil servants to a full 1 hour per day.

Director General of CSC Abdulla Saeed told Sun today that the Commission receives a lot of complaints that the existing 45 minutes of break for lunch time is not enough and for the time be extended to a full 1 hour. He said certain offices have also made official requests to extend the break time, and said that the Commission has discussed the issue and that efforts to extend the break time are now underway.

The civil servant’s working hours were reviewed in March last year, when it was declared that the employees will get a break of 30 minutes for lunch and an addition 14 minutes to perform their prayer.

“It was decided that civil servants will have 30 minutes for lunch and 15 minutes to pray, that they may take a total of 45 minutes. Some employees choose [to go for break] from 12:00 to 12:45 while others choose to go from 12:45 to 13:30. If they try to go home, come back, go for prayer, and then come back the office, it is too little time. We have received a lot of complaints regarding this,” Saeed said.

The working hours during President Maumoon’s administration was from 07:30 in the morning until 14:30 in the afternoon. It was later changed by President Nasheed to 08:00 in the morning until 16:00 in the evening.

President Waheed assumed office in early 2012 and changed the working hours to start at 08:00 in the morning until 15:00 late afternoon, which is followed presently.