As more Indonesian workers are hired in Japan, hiring managers increasingly say they are unsure how to respond during Ramadan. Fasting (sawm) is an obligatory religious practice, not merely a “dietary restriction.” This article explains workplace considerations for Indonesian staff during Ramadan—from issues that actually arise on site to concrete response steps—at a level B2B HR and leadership teams can use immediately. Rather than staying at the level of systems and theory, it centers on practical know-how for building long-term trust with staff.

What Is Ramadan: Religious Background and the 2027 Period

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, a one-month obligatory religious practice of abstaining from food, drink, smoking, and sexual activity from sunrise to sunset. About 87% of Indonesia’s population is Muslim, and the large majority of Indonesian staff practice Ramadan regardless of status of residence—whether Specified Skilled Worker, Technical Intern Training, highly skilled talent, student visa, or otherwise.

Because the Islamic calendar is lunar, the start date on the Gregorian calendar moves earlier by about 11 days each year. Ramadan in 2027 is expected to begin around February 6 and continue into early March (the exact start date may shift by one day depending on moon sighting). Companies need to build shift plans each year on the assumption of this variability.

Eid al-Fitr, the festival marking the end of Ramadan (also called Lebaran in Indonesian), is a national holiday for two days starting the day after Ramadan ends, and it is not uncommon for Indonesian staff to request home leave or return travel. Early confirmation of paid leave requests and flight arrangements for this period is also an important task for hiring managers.

For the institutional aspects of status of residence, see our summary on the basics of hiring foreign workers; use it alongside your checks at the start of hiring.

Physical and Performance Changes Staff Experience During Ramadan

Fasting follows a cycle of eating before sunrise (suhoor) and breaking the fast after sunset (iftar). In Japan’s winter and spring, daylight hours are shorter, so fasting periods are relatively shorter—but staff still go without food and water for roughly 11–12 hours a day.

The following physical changes have been reported among staff:

  • Concentration and judgment tend to decline around 2:00–4:00 p.m.
  • A tendency toward dehydration raises the risk of health problems, especially during heavy labor or work in high-temperature environments
  • Sleep is often fragmented by nighttime activity after iftar, so fatigue more easily carries into the next day
  • Chronic fatigue tends to build up in the latter half of Ramadan (from the third week onward)

On the mental side, many staff report feeling it is hard to tell colleagues they are fasting because of the gap with Japanese workplace culture. Cases of sudden absence due to poor health after silently pushing through are not uncommon. Building relationships in which you can check in on how people are doing day to day is a prerequisite for maintaining performance.

Common On-Site Questions: Ramadan-Related Inquiries Hiring Managers Receive

Common on-site consultations include the following patterns.

“I don’t want to go to the cafeteria at lunch” Staff who are fasting may find the smell of food and an environment where others are eating distressing. Cases have been reported in which staff are pressured to go to the cafeteria together, or unconscious conformity pressure—“not eating is weird”—wears them down. As a rule, how people spend their lunch break should be left to individual discretion.

Requests to “secure time for prayer” Muslims have an obligation to pray five times a day (salat). Each prayer takes about 5–10 minutes, or around 15 minutes including ablution (wudu) beforehand. When prayer times fall during working hours, you should discuss in advance whether breaks can be used or short interruptions can be allowed.

Requests for “several days off after Eid” Lebaran is the most important festival spent with family. Long-leave requests for home visits or return travel tend to concentrate, creating a risk of gaps in the shift schedule. You need to plan backup staffing while maintaining fairness with other staff.

Harassment reports that “colleagues tease me about fasting” Even well-intentioned comments such as “Why aren’t you eating?” or “You’re not even drinking water in this heat?” become psychological distress when repeated. This is the time to consider adding religious background to harassment-prevention training.

Workplace Considerations: Three Pillars—Shifts, Meals, and Prayer

Criteria for Shift Adjustments

The core of workplace considerations for Indonesian staff during Ramadan is balancing respect for religious practice with maintaining the ability to perform the job. Clear decision criteria reduce situations in which managers struggle with one-off responses.

Effective approaches for shift-adjustment criteria:

  • Hold a hearing with the individual one month before Ramadan begins and record their preferences
  • If they are working around sunset (iftar), decide in advance a process to allow a temporary break within the scope of work rules
  • For staff who want to switch to night shifts, prioritize their wishes while confirming operational feasibility
  • For hazardous work such as heavy equipment operation or work at height, share health self-reporting rules in writing

Under the Labor Standards Act, breaks for religious reasons can be handled as non-statutory breaks by defining them in work rules. Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare guidance on employing foreign workers also positions reasonable accommodation of cultural and religious backgrounds as a factor that promotes workplace retention. For details, see the MHLW page on measures for employing foreign workers.

Improving the Meal Environment

At workplaces with company meals or a cafeteria, providing halal options is ideal, but even when that is not immediately possible, the following measures are effective.

  • Share an ingredient list covering allergy and religious dietary needs with cafeteria staff
  • Secure a place where a microwave and hot-water facilities can be used around iftar (after sunset)
  • Secure refrigerator space for suhoor (the pre-dawn meal) during Ramadan

On halal certification, standards from Indonesia’s MUI (Indonesian Ulema Council) differ from those of Japanese halal certification bodies, so the accurate practical approach is to carefully confirm with each staff member what is acceptable to them.

Setting Up a Prayer Space

Prayer requires a clean, quiet space oriented toward Mecca (northwest in Japan). More companies are creating dedicated prayer rooms, but you can also repurpose part of a meeting room, rest room, or changing room during prayer times. Staff often bring their own prayer mat (sajadah), so securing space is the main challenge.

Failure Patterns and How to Avoid Them

Organizing failure patterns and avoidance measures helps structurally prevent mistakes hiring managers tend to make.

Failure pattern 1: A passive stance of “we’ll accommodate religion only if the person asks” Avoidance: Build explanation of religious and cultural considerations into onboarding orientation so Indonesian staff can request support on their own initiative. Naming a contact person for consultations lowers the barrier to asking.

Failure pattern 2: Treating fasting as “a personal choice” and allowing no work adjustments at all Avoidance: Failing to provide reasonable accommodation not only hinders retention of foreign workers but also creates risk from the standpoint of the duty to maintain a proper workplace environment. Put the rules in writing in the work rules and pair that with awareness training for managers.

Failure pattern 3: Assuming “things go back to normal after Ramadan” and skipping ongoing follow-up Avoidance: Schedule a meeting after the Eid holiday period as well to check health and workload. Follow-up is important to prevent accumulated fatigue from turning into intent to resign.

Failure pattern 4: Trying a one-size-fits-all approach for everyone and creating fairness issues with non-Muslim staff Avoidance: Provide consideration measures for a specific religion while clearly opening the same request route to staff with other religious or cultural backgrounds. Transparency of the system preserves a sense of fairness inside the company.

For another case where cross-cultural communication considerations matter, see also workplace communication with Myanmar talent.

Points Hiring Managers Often Overlook

Among points hiring managers often overlook, the following three are especially important.

Point 1: Risk that status of residence renewal coincides with Ramadan Renewal applications for status of residence involve submitting documents to the Immigration Services Agency of Japan. If counter visits at the Immigration Services Agency of Japan or requests for the individual to check documents concentrate during Ramadan, document errors become more likely due to poor health and reduced concentration while fasting. It is desirable for HR to have a system to check and, where appropriate, submit renewal documents on the employee’s behalf.

Point 2: Consideration is also needed for staff who are not fasting Fasting may be religiously excused in cases such as illness, pregnancy, or travel. Managers also have a role in promoting understanding of diverse forms of practice so that staff who are not fasting during Ramadan do not feel, from workplace atmosphere, that “not fasting is wrong.”

Point 3: Concentrated paid leave after Ramadan assumes planned staffing Coordinated home leave around Lebaran may lead Indonesian staff to request paid leave at the same time. Unless “staffing plans around Ramadan and the Eid holidays” are built into the annual schedule from the hiring stage, the workplace risks becoming dysfunctional. Recognizing this peak-period risk at the hiring-planning stage is where hiring managers’ practical capability shows.

For Indonesian staff hired as highly skilled foreign professionals, the situation may differ by type of status of residence. It is also useful to review our explanation of status of residence for highly skilled foreign professionals.

Diagram: Pre-Hiring Confirmation Flow for the Ramadan Period

As an alternative to a flow diagram, the steps are organized as follows.

Step 1: At onboarding or eight weeks before Ramadan begins, distribute a “religious practice hearing sheet.” Confirm preferred accommodations (prayer times, meals, shifts) and the individual’s wishes within the range that can be supported.

Step 2: Based on the hearing results, hold a three-way meeting among the site manager, HR, and the staff member. Put in writing what can and cannot be adjusted operationally, and keep a confirmation document signed by both sides.

Step 3: By two weeks before Ramadan begins, share the final plan for prayer space, break rules, and shift changes with the site. Agree in advance with managers on how to explain this to other staff.

Step 4: During Ramadan, conduct a weekly status check (about a five-minute check-in) and record health, workload, and any difficulties. Make small shift adjustments flexibly as needed.

Step 5: Hold a follow-up meeting after Eid and conduct a retrospective that feeds into next year’s improvements.

Sharing this flow internally in advance minimizes situations in which managers must decide case by case and prevents uneven responses.

Practical Checklist

As a practical checklist, organize items in three stages: before, during, and after Ramadan.

Before Ramadan begins (8–4 weeks prior)

  • Distribute and collect hearing sheets from Indonesian staff
  • Secure a prayer space and confirm cleanliness rules
  • Check cafeteria and hot-water facilities for halal and religious dietary readiness
  • Draft shift adjustments and share them with site managers
  • Share brief information about Ramadan with other staff (optional study sessions, etc.)
  • Confirm paid-leave request rules and staffing plans around the Eid holidays
  • Reconfirm Hello Work notification status and validity of status of residence

During Ramadan (weekly)

  • Weekly check-in on health and workload
  • Confirm operation of health self-reporting rules for hazardous work
  • Confirm that prayer time is being appropriately secured
  • Monitor for teasing or discriminatory remarks

After Ramadan ends (within 1–2 weeks)

  • Conduct a follow-up meeting (check accumulated fatigue and satisfaction)
  • Record response issues and reflect them in next year’s procedures
  • Confirm the status of residence renewal schedule (including whether e-Gov online applications can be used)

Using the e-Gov electronic application system helps you manage status of residence–related filings while avoiding crowded procedures. Annual updates to the checklist are recommended so response quality stays consistent even when the person in charge changes.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1. Can we require staff who are fasting to take fluids? A1. You may give cautions for occupational safety reasons, but compulsion may amount to an infringement of religious freedom. In high-temperature environments or heavy labor, the realistic approach is to review job assignment or adjust break frequency. Explain heatstroke risk to the individual and put in place a system that encourages them to report if their condition worsens.

Q2. Is there a legal obligation to secure prayer time during working hours? A2. At present, Japanese law does not contain an explicit obligation. However, from the standpoint of proper employment management of foreign workers, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare recommends reasonable accommodation for religious and cultural backgrounds. By setting out provisions in work rules, you can create an environment in which managers can respond with discretion.

Q3. How should you respond if other employees say, “Why are only Indonesians given special treatment?” A3. Explain that accommodation for religious practices is not “preferential treatment” but a response to different needs. It is effective to reiterate that the same application route is open to staff with other religious and cultural backgrounds, and to make the fairness of the system visible.

Q4. What should you do if unexcused absences increase during Ramadan? A4. First, check whether there may be an underlying situation in which staff find it hard to report feeling unwell. If shift adjustments or a temporary review of working hours are operationally feasible, present those options first, then reconfirm the absence rules. Moving straight to disciplinary action carries a high risk of turnover and is not advisable.

Q5. Should the same approach be taken for Indonesian staff who hold visas other than Specified Skilled Worker or Technical Intern Training (such as work statuses)? A5. Regardless of the type of status of residence, accommodation for religious practices applies in the same way. However, because the scope of work permitted differs by status of residence, you need to confirm that any shift changes do not fall outside the scope of work allowed under that status. For unclear points, inquiry with the Immigration Services Agency of Japan or consultation with a specialist is recommended.

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Long-term trust with Indonesian staff depends heavily on the quality of your response during Ramadan. Saying “we didn’t know” can lead to irreversible turnover or workplace trouble. Building Ramadan considerations into your annual plan and starting now to put systems in place in coordination with frontline managers is a moment that tests your capability as a hiring manager.

For support with developing individual response policies or designing communication with staff, you can consult us via the Foreign Talent Insights contact page.

Related Articles: Practical Issues Worth Reviewing Together

Please also review practical articles on related themes as needed.

Toward Utilizing Indonesian Talent in the Accommodation Industry

Consideration during Ramadan is especially important in the accommodation industry, where shift work is common. If you are considering the full path from hiring to retention, please also review the Guide to Hiring Indonesians in the Accommodation Industry.