PETALING JAYA: The new work shift schedule for nurses must ensure that their well-being and mental health are not affected, says the Malayan Nurses Union.
Its president Saaidah Athman said with the current shortage of nurses and the workload they bear, the 45 hours per week schedule may not be suitable for nurses doing shift duty.
Currently, the shifts are morning (7am-2pm), afternoon (2pm-9pm) and night (9pm-7.30am).
Nurses are required to do two night shifts a month, which would come up to 21 hours.
However, based on the availability of manpower and the ward’s needs, some may have to take up to three night shifts a month.
Malaysia is already projecting a 60% shortage of nurses by 2030.
Saaidah said if the 45-hour work-week is implemented, some staff members will have to take up double duty due to the shortage of manpower.
Those who commute long distances may be even more tired and pressured as they would reach home late, while there is also concern of how nurses who are mothers will have to coordinate their schedule with daycare centres, she added.
She said the new shift hours could affect the allocation of rest days and work days.
“All this may exert excessive pressure and stress on the staff,” she said.
The Public Service Department (PSD) has released a circular on streamlining the working hours of civil servants who do not work on fixed office hours with those who work on office hours.
This makes the working hours including rest days total 45 hours a week.
Heads of departments are allowed to roster their staff’s working hours to four to six days a week, with rest days ranging from one to three days a week.
If this is implemented, nurses will have three additional shift hours.
Despite the PSD circular, Saaidah said the Health Ministry and its nursing division have yet to release the guidelines or order on the new shifts.
The union is proposing that the additional work hours be counted as break hours.
This, said Saaidah, would alter the shift hours to 7am-3pm, 1pm-9pm and 9pm-7.30am for the three shifts.
“The union is requesting that the Health Ministry set hours that would be flexible for shift workers.
“At this juncture, the ministry’s Human Resources Department has yet to release any directives on shifts.
“I hope the new shift hours will not affect critical services such as nursing,” she said, adding that she hopes the ministry will ensure that the hours will not affect the work-life balance of nurses.
On their shift work, Saaidah said the biggest challenge is at night, in particular when nurses have to stay awake to ensure that patients get continuous and quality care.
She promised that the union will continue to listen to the grievances of its members.
Opposing the directive, Hartal Doktor Kontrak said it fails to address the underlying issues faced by the nursing workforce, such as insufficient shift allowances, lack of work-life balance, and the immense physical and emotional toll of shift work.
“Comparing shift workers in healthcare to office-based civil servants demonstrates a lack of understanding of the unique challenges faced by healthcare providers.
“We urge the Health Ministry and PSD to revisit this decision immediately. Policies should prioritise the well-being of healthcare workers and foster a supportive environment that retains talent within Malaysia,” it said in a statement on Wednesday.
On Thursday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said the adjustment of working hours to 45 hours a week for nurses from Dec 1 is reasonable, assuring them that their work-life balance and welfare would not be affected.
He said the current shift of 42 hours-per-week is not compliant with the directive.
“Implementing the 45-hour work week with flexibility would mean working four to six days a week, with one to three days off a week,” he added.
The working hours will not exceed 12 hours a day.
