TMJ Says Johor Will be Reverting to Saturday-Sunday Weekends, Netizens Have Mixed Reactions

Some states such as Kelantan, Kedah, Terengganu, and Johor observe Friday and Saturday as official weekend rest days but that’s about to change for the latter. Regent of Johor, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim has announced that the state will revert to having their weekend off days on Saturday and Sunday beginning 1 January 2025.

In a Facebook post, Tunku Ismail announced, “Following consent and blessing from His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, and after considering the views of the Johor Islamic Religious Council (JAINJ), I would like to announce that starting 1 January 2025, Johor's weekend off days will be changed to Saturday and Sunday.”

“I have decreed for the Johor Chief Minister YAB Dato’ Onn Hafiz Ghazi and Johor Mufti to discuss and study every angle and aspect regarding this matter. I hope that the private sector, the government and related parties allow sufficient time and space for Muslim workers to perform Friday prayers accordingly.”

Netizens took to social media to express their views

One said that Johor has changed their weekend off days pretty frequently: before 1993, it was Fridays and Saturdays, in 1994 it was Saturdays and Sundays before it reverted to the former again in 2014.

In response to one netizen saying this was a hasty decision, another said, “What is so hasty about this? Try asking parents who work in a private sector in Johor and are off on Saturdays and Sundays, but their children in school are off on Fridays and Saturdays. Are you working in a private company in Johor? Do you have children in Johor? No wonder the sentence that comes out of your mouth is arrogant and selfish.”

“This is good because now in Johor, parents who are working half days on Saturday and have off days on Sunday don’t have time to spend with their children who are off on Fridays and Saturdays. How can parents raise their children in the right way if the time they spend together is short for many years?”

One said, “Johor is forced to revert to Saturday and Sunday off days because their stadiums are always not filled.”

“To be honest, I like having off days on Fridays. In fact, if Malaysia moves to have three off days like Europe (Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays), it would be perfect to create uniformity amongst the states which are traditionalist and heartland-urbanist,” said another.

Another user commented, “Johor starts having off days on Saturday and Sunday next year. It will be difficult at the beginning to get used to it. Usually, when we work on Sundays, it feels great because no one calls us at the office.”

“Those who like having weekends on Saturdays and Sundays in Johor must have a partner in other states. Don’t condemn us singles because we don’t like our weekends being changes. Just because we don’t have a man doesn’t mean we don’t have a life. Our reasons are valid too.”

Any Johorians here? Let us know about your thoughts on the change in the comments!