All quiet on the labor front, official says

JAKARTA (JP): The increase in the minimum wage levels in nine provinces on Aug. 1 went into effect without any real trouble, a senior official of the Ministry of Manpower said yesterday.

"We've been monitoring the situation over the last two weeks and found no companies in the nine provinces to be violating minimum wage regulations," Director General for Industrial Relations and Labor Standards Soewarto said during a regular discussion with journalists at his office yesterday.

"If there were companies breaking the minimum wage regulations, workers would have gone on strike or lodged protests with the Ministry of Manpower," Soewarto said.

"Besides, there is no reason why companies would want to postpone the adjustment of workers wages given they were notified of the hikes four months in advance."

He said he summoned heads of the provincial manpower offices in the nine provinces two weeks ago to ensure the enforcement of the increase.

The nine provinces -- Aceh, North Sumatra, Jambi, South Sumatra, Lampung, West Kalimantan, East Nusa Tenggara, Maluku and Irian Jaya-- raised the daily minimum wages between 19 and 35 percent, beginning Aug. 1.

In Aceh and Maluku, the minimum wage was raised to Rp 3,100 while in North Sumatra, the site of massive workers protests in April, it was raised to Rp 3,750.

In Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan and Lampung the new minimum wage level is now set at Rp 3,000. In East Nusa Tenggara the new minimum wage is Rp 2,500, and in Irian Jaya Rp 4,500.

The other 18 provinces raised their minimum wage levels in January and April.

Protests

The hikes in the minimum wages in Jakarta and West Java, enforced in January, were greeted with protests from both employers and workers. Employers there delayed putting the new wages into effect, complaining that they were not given enough notice. This then prompted workers to stage strikes to demand on compliance.

The months of January and February saw the largest number of workers' strikes in Indonesia this year. It declined only after the government threatened to severely punish employers for non- compliance.

Soewarto said that, beginning next April, the increase in regional minimum wages would be made simultaneously nationwide.

The minimum wage levels beginning next year will also be at least equal to what is perceived to be the workers' minimum living requirements, estimated based on the cost of living in each province.

Soewarto said that there will be no excuses for companies not complying with the hikes in the minimum wages next year.

"Companies can already anticipate and avoid conflicts with their workers," he said.

Soewarto also denied that the labor legislation in Indonesia is not adequate in protecting the interests of workers.

"Even foreign investors are complaining that Indonesian workers are over-protected. They want the government to let the industrial relations develop in accordance to the free market mechanism," he said. (rms)