Workers take grievances to rights commission<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Hundreds of workers from three Jakarta-based
\ncompanies protested their dismissals to the National Commission
\non Human Rights yesterday.<\/p>\n
Workers of PT Yota Megah, Bouraq Airlines and PT Masindo
\nMultimedia told commission members they had been unfairly fired
\nwith too little or no severance pay.<\/p>\n
Some 200 workers of PT Yota Megah, maker of Adidas sports
\napparel in North Jakarta, said their employment status had been
\nunclear since they went on strike on March 24.<\/p>\n
They went on strike in a show of solidarity with six
\ncolleagues the company had fired in January for demanding better
\npay for the firm's 700 workers. The six were activists of the
\nlocal unit of the All-Indonesia Workers Union Federation.<\/p>\n
A worker, Pesti, told commission members B.N. Marbun and M.
\nSalim that the company management had banned the 415 strikers
\nfrom the premises.<\/p>\n
\"We have been prohibited from entering the factory premises as
\nof March 31, while we haven't been officially dismissed,\" she
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Another worker, Yusuf, said the workers demanded that the
\ncompany raise their meal allowance to Rp 1,500 a day from Rp 600,
\nstop making employees work overtime and raise their wages from
\nthe current Rp 172,000 (about US$21.50) a month.<\/p>\n
Yusuf said that on March 26, the workers referred the case to
\nthe Ministry of Manpower, which promised to help but so far there
\nhad been no result.<\/p>\n
Another worker, Beti Zaniah, said that uncertainty had reigned
\nsince March 30 when the company management threatened to fire all
\nstriking workers who failed to return to work by March 31. Few
\nheeded the firm's ultimatum because the management refused to
\nreply to the workers' demand, she said.<\/p>\n
Marbun said the commission wanted to see the six workers, who
\nwere not present at the meeting, dismissed in January.<\/p>\n
\"We want to get a complete picture,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Bouraq<\/p>\n
Separately, commission member Clementino dos Reis Amaral met
\nwith seven representatives of 21 Bouraq Airlines flight
\nattendants who claimed their contracts were abruptly broken due
\nto the economic crisis.<\/p>\n
The flight attendants went to the commission to check whether
\nthe commission had kept its last month's promise that it would
\nask Bouraq's management to pay them the rest of their salaries
\nwhich the company had withheld.<\/p>\n
Bouraq's management broke its contracts with the flight
\nattendants on March 1. The contracts were valid until August this
\nyear and July next year.<\/p>\n
Their lawyer, Fathi Hanif, from Jakarta's Legal Aid Institute
\nsaid that up to yesterday the management had not replied to the
\ncommission's letter, dated April 3.<\/p>\n
Amaral promised to remind Bouraq's management about the unpaid
\nsalaries.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, commission member Soegiri saw 70 workers of PT
\nMasindo Multimedia, a printing company in East Jakarta, who were
\ndismissed April 1.<\/p>\n
According to the protesters' lawyer Hanif, the company ceased
\noperation due to financial difficulties and would pay
\ncompensation amounting to a month's basic salary to each of its
\n96 employees.<\/p>\n
\"The workers asked the management not to close down but to
\ntake efficiency measures first. When the company insisted on
\nclosing down, the employees ask for compensation amounting to
\ntwice their basic salary, but the management refused.\" (ind)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/workers-take-grievances-to-rights-commission-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}