City reviews decree on labor welfare<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The city administration is reviewing the seven-
\nyear-old decree on workers' welfare, deeming it now ineffective.<\/p>\n
The head of social welfare department of the city manpower
\nagency, Suwardja, said on Thursday that decree No. 7\/1989 is
\ninsubstantial, therefore review is necessary to make it powerful.<\/p>\n
\"The review includes the modification of the penalty which is
\nthe weakest point of the decree,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said many companies have failed to abide by the decree
\nbecause the penalty for fail to comply is feeble.<\/p>\n
The decree says that an employer is obliged to improve
\nworkers' welfare by providing them with facilities and
\nallowances. \"A violator will get three months imprisonment or a
\nRp 50,000 (US$23.25) fine,\" the decree says.<\/p>\n
Under the decree, a company should provide its workers with
\nmedical services, religious centers, uniforms, cafeterias, sports
\ncenters, recreation, transportation, housing, dormitories, rest
\nrooms, meeting rooms, child care centers, insurance,
\ncooperatives, and basic education for them and their children.<\/p>\n
The city council's Commission E for public welfare said
\nrecently that none of the 34,000 companies operating in Jakarta
\nhave implemented the regulation. The commission also blamed the
\nmanpower agency for not intensively publicizing it and for the
\nlight punishment for violators.<\/p>\n
Suwardja said his office has promoted the decree among
\ncompanies. \"Since the decree is relatively new and the fact that
\nthe punishment is too light, many companies just ignore it,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Suwardja said the punishment will be made stiffer but he
\nrefused say just how long a sentence or amount of fines violators
\ncould expect. \"I think it's too early to name it,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The announcement on violations of workers' welfare was made
\nafter the commission's impromptu visits to several companies,
\nsome of which included uniforms and transport allowances in their
\nworkers' wages.<\/p>\n
Any allowances must be added to the daily wages, which have
\njust been raised from Rp 4,600 to Rp 5,250 for Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Some companies are, however, still defiant and consider the
\ntransport allowance to be included in the workers' daily wage
\nlevel.<\/p>\n
PT Wonderful, a dying and weaving company, in East Jakarta can
\nbe cited as example. The commission visited the company on
\nThursday and found that its workers' daily wages of Rp 5,200
\nincluded transport allowances.<\/p>\n
Katmiati, a worker who has been working for the company for 14
\nyears, said she is paid Rp 5,250 per day without a transportation
\nallowance. The company does not provide transportation.<\/p>\n
The administration is also reviewing a loophole riddled decree
\nwhich stipulates developers must build low-cost apartments. (yns)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/city-reviews-decree-on-labor-welfare-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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