Bank staff protest, owners mull suit<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Scattered protests by bank employees greeted the
\nweekend closure of 38 private banks here on Monday as owners of
\nthe closed banks mulled whether to sue the government over the
\nmove.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) suspended trading on the
\nclosed banks, while the Federation of Domestic Private Banks
\ndemanded the government take concrete measures to reactivate the
\nreal sector to expedite economic recovery.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of employees of at least five of the closed banks --
\nBank Papan Sejahtera, Bank Central Dagang (BCD), Bank Mashill
\nUtama, Bank Putra Surya Perkasa and Bank Bahari -- picketed their
\nrespective offices, demanding fair severance pay.<\/p>\n
About 150 employees of BCD packed the bank's lobby on Jl.
\nSudirman, South Jakarta, while right behind the BCD building some
\n100 Bank Mashill employees protested their office.<\/p>\n
\"We are demanding the bank's owners pay us severance pay at
\nleast two times government regulations,\" said a spokesman for the
\nBCD employees.<\/p>\n
According to government regulations, a worker who has been
\nwith a company for less than five years is entitled to severance
\npay equal to one-month's salary. The maximum severance pay is for
\nemployees who have been with a company for over 35 years. These
\nemployees are entitled to severance pay equal to 11-months
\nsalary.<\/p>\n
Ibnu Sina, 27, an employee at Bank Mashill who organized the
\nprotest, said the employees waited to meet with the bank's owners
\nbut they did not show up.<\/p>\n
\"We will continue to protest until the owners meet our
\ndemands,\" he said, adding that the employees were demanding
\nseverance pay four times government regulations.<\/p>\n
Placards covered the Mashill building's ground floor where the
\nprotest took place. One of placards read: \"We are ready to become
\nPeople's Security (Kamra) to chase out the (bank's) owners.\"<\/p>\n
Bank Putra Surya Perkasa was also hit by a protest, with some
\n250 employees gathering in the bank's lobby at the Sumitmas II
\nbuilding on Jl. Sudirman. They also demanded fair severance pay.<\/p>\n
Benny M. Suwarya, the bank's legal officer who coordinated the
\nprotest, said the employees would continue to protest until they
\nreceived the money.<\/p>\n
The National Labor Party said in a statement that it would
\nfile a class action suit against the government for the banking
\ncrisis, which resulted in the massive lay offs.<\/p>\n
The party's chairman, Tohap Simanungkalit, said the banking
\ncrisis resulted from the central bank's failure to monitor
\ndomestic banks.<\/p>\n
\"The National Labor Party will file a class action suit at a
\n(district) court against the government, in this case the
\nPresident and the monetary authorities, because they have to be
\nheld responsible for the bank liquidations which inflict losses
\nto employees of the liquidated banks and the people in general.\"<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, some 25 owners of the closed banks are likely to
\nsue the government over the move, said Sukamdani Sahid
\nGitosardjono, the owner of the closed Bank Sahid Gajah Perkasa.<\/p>\n
Sukamdani told the afternoon daily Suara Pembaruan the central
\nbank and the government were using double standards to decide
\nwhich banks to close, compelling the owners to take legal action
\nagainst the government.<\/p>\n
He cited the ongoing economic crisis as the main reason the
\nbanks were in the red.<\/p>\n
The closures would devastate the economy and were detrimental
\nto the bank employees. Around 17,000 workers in the banking
\nsector will lose their jobs as a result of the decision, he said.<\/p>\n
The government on Saturday closed 38 private banks,
\nnationalized seven other banks and will recapitalize nine private
\nbanks.<\/p>\n
Of the 38 closed banks, seven are listed on the JSX. They are
\nBank Papan, Bank Umum Servitia, Bank Mashil, Bank Arya Panduarta,
\nBank Bahari, Bank Bira and Bank Ficorinvest.<\/p>\n
The JSX suspended trading on the closed banks. The next move
\nis to delist the banks as it did with four banks closed by the
\ngovernment last year.<\/p>\n
The exchange also said that it temporarily suspended trading
\non the nationalized listed banks -- Bank Duta, Bank Tamara and
\nBank Rama.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Antara reported that depositors rushed Bank Bali
\nand Bank Lippo's branches in Semarang, Central Java, fearing that
\nthe banks eventually would be closed down if they could not raise
\nthe money for recapitalization.<\/p>\n
Minister of Finance Bambang Subianto again reassured the
\npublic the government guaranteed all deposits in domestic banks.<\/p>\n
At a session with the House of Representatives Commission VIII
\nfor finance and the state budget, Bambang said that the bank
\nrestructuring program was a necessary step toward the country's
\neconomic recovery.<\/p>\n
\"If the program is well implemented, God willing, it will help
\naccelerate the process of economic recovery.\" (01\/rei\/rid)<\/p>",
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