Airline employees plan to set up workers' union

Airline employees plan to set up workers' union

JAKARTA (JP): More than 70 local airline employees and those
who already dismissed from airlines have agreed to set up a
powerful union that would cover workers of all sectors of the
airline industry.

The planned union, expected to be launched next month, was
designed to help defend airline employees in any possible dispute
with companies, the group's spokeswoman Debra said Saturday after
meeting with lawyers at the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute office.

"The union will attempt to ask the companies not to readily
dismiss the workers. So far, the position of the airline
employees is quite weak," said Debra, a former employee of
Sempati Air, which has stopped operations.

The union, she said, would also be used as a forum to help
former airline employees to find suitable jobs here or overseas.

According to Debra, airline workers here have been divided
into different unions, such as for pilots, cabin crew, ground
staff and technicians.

"The old regime (of former president Soeharto) forced us to be
split into small and different groups. That's why we could not
survive in airing our demands," she said.

Included in the group at the meeting were senior airline
employee Dolf Latumahina, a former president of Sempati and
Garuda Indonesia's pilot association chairman Sadrach M. Nababan.

Dolf promised that he would seek help from his colleagues and
from airlines in this region which might have vacancies for the
dismissed Indonesian employees.

"There are still opportunities in the airline business for
you," he told the crowd.

"I feel Singapore and Brunei could hire Indonesian airline
employees," he said.

Lawyer Surya Tjandra of the institute said the set up of the
union was important to strengthen the workers' position before
their companies.

"The companies often dismissed their employees without giving
severance payment, which is required by existing regulations,"
Surya said.

So far, the institute has witnessed at least 700 workers of
local airlines packing the office, complaining about improper
treatment they have received from their employers.

The biggest number was from Sempati, which dismissed its 1,800
employees following its closure on June 6 due to the economic
crisis.

In May, hundreds of employees from airlines which were
controlled by former president Soeharto's youngest son Hutomo
Mandala Putra, visited the institute, looking for legal advice
because the company refused to give proper severance payment.

The financial turmoil also hit Mandala Airline, which
dismissed its 40 flight attendants, who then asked fro help from
the institute in June.

In March, dozens of Bouraq pilots and flight attendants also
asked for help at the institute over their dismissal. (jun)