Gus Dur wants labor decree reviewed<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): President Abdurrahman \"Gus Dur\" Wahid asked
\nMinister of Manpower and Transmigration Al-Hilal Hamdi on Tuesday
\nto review the ministerial decree on higher severance pay for
\ndismissed or resigning workers, saying it had hampered foreign
\ninvestment.<\/p>\n
The President said the decree, which was issued by then
\nmanpower minister Bomer Pasaribu on June 20, 2000, must be
\nrevised because it has sparked objections from Korean and
\nJapanese businessmen who are investing in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"Please, review the decree. It is shameful. Such a decree
\nshould not appear again. Foreign people wish to help us but we
\nmake trouble for them. Alhamdulillah (Thank God), Al-Hilal
\nconfirmed the decree is being reviewed,\" Gus Dur said in an
\naddress to participants of an extraordinary congress of the Labor
\nExporters Association (Apjati) at the State Palace here.<\/p>\n
The decree, which has also triggered protests from the
\nAssociation of Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo),
\nregulates that employers are obliged to gain permission if they
\nwish to dismiss their employees and, should permission be
\ngranted, they are required to provide a severance payment as well
\na merit or service payment to the dismissed or resigning workers.<\/p>\n
In terms of severance pay, according to the decree, a
\ndismissed worker employed for less than a year will receive 100
\npercent of his\/her gross monthly wage while those employed for
\nless than two years receive 200 percent of their gross monthly
\nwage. This scale continues upward to employees who have worked
\nless than five years at a company. Those who have worked more
\nthan five years will receive 600 percent of their gross monthly
\nwage.<\/p>\n
Regarding service or merit payment, dismissed employees who
\nhave worked between three and six years get another 200 percent
\nof their gross monthly salary while those who have been employed
\nbetween six and nine years gain 300 percent of their gross
\nmonthly salary.<\/p>\n
Workers who have been employed between nine to 12 years
\nreceive 400 percent while those employed between 12 and 15 years
\nreceive 500 percent of their monthly wage. The scale continues
\nupward to those who have worked for 24 years or more receiving
\n1,000 percent of their gross monthly salary.<\/p>\n
The previous decree only ruled that dismissed workers who have
\nbeen at a company for at least five years would receive any such
\nservice or merit payment with the highest awarded being 600
\npercent for those who have worked more than 25 years.<\/p>\n
Workers who resign or retire are only entitled to receive
\nservice or merit payment.<\/p>\n
Al-Hilal, who also attended the ceremony, conceded that the
\ndecree has created financial difficulties for investors who may
\nhave to dismiss some of their workers but added it is also a
\nsafety net in the event of any arbitrary dismissals.<\/p>\n
He said the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry has studied
\nthe decree and found that it may cause difficulties for workers
\nin the long term because a number of employers may reject the
\nprovision of a pension program for their employees.<\/p>\n
He said all controversies surrounding the decree would be
\ndiscussed among a tripartite team representing the government,
\nApindo and labor unions.<\/p>\n
\"So, the decree will not be revoked but needs amendment,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Federation of All Indonesian Workers Union
\n(FSPSI) threatened to call for a national labor strike if the
\ngovernment went ahead with the review.<\/p>\n
\"FSPSI, with other labor unions, will call on workers to take
\nto the streets and we are able to organize a national strike if
\nthe government reviews the decree. The government should maintain
\nthe decree to prevent employers dismissing their employees
\narbitrarily,\" FSPSI chairman Jacob Nuawea said. (rms)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gus-dur-wants-labor-decree-reviewed-1447893297",
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