The Ministry of Civil Service has moved to clarify comments that appeared to suggest civil servants would begin work at 11am, saying the time was offered only as an illustrative example of how flexible arrangements might operate and is not an official reporting time.
In a written statement, the Ministry said remarks made during a recent session of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence were misunderstood. The 11am reference, it said, was intended to demonstrate the mechanics of staggered or flexible starts — not to set a uniform standard across the public service. The clarification follows earlier confirmation from Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka that a Flexi Working Hour Framework has been developed for the civil service.
The Ministry confirmed the framework gives individual ministries the authority to adopt flexible schedules tailored to their operational needs, while requiring that continuity of public services and productivity be maintained. It said the initiative is designed to help civil servants manage practical challenges such as heavy traffic, childcare responsibilities and overall well-being, and is not a one-size-fits-all shift in reporting time.
Officials emphasised the policy remains in a pilot phase. The Ministry said ministries taking part in the pilot will trial different models of flexibility — for example, staggered start times — to determine what best balances staff needs with service delivery. Formal guidelines will be issued once the framework is finalised and after the pilot’s results have been assessed, the statement said.
The clarification comes amid renewed public debate over whether changing civil service hours could ease congestion on the Suva–Nausori corridor. Opposition member Vijay Nath and other critics have urged a review of working hours as a way to reduce peak-hour gridlock, citing lengthy commutes that can stretch to nearly two hours for some workers. Supporters of flexible arrangements point to potential benefits beyond traffic relief, including improved work–life balance and reduced stress for employees with caregiving duties.
Government sources say the Flexi Working Hour Framework is intended to give ministries discretion to design practical solutions suitable to their functions — for example, agencies requiring fixed public-facing hours would need to maintain service availability, while others could more readily stagger shifts or adjust start and finish times. How those balances will be struck will be tested during the pilot, with the Ministry promising guidance once the framework is finalised.
For now, the Ministry’s clarification seeks to allay concerns among civil servants and the public that the 11am remark signalled an immediate or universal change to working hours. The pilot and forthcoming guidelines will determine whether and how flexible hours are adopted across Fiji’s public service.
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