Apindo: Labour Bill Must Become a Job Creation Engine
JAKARTA - The Indonesian Employers’ Association (Apindo) believes that the House of Representatives (DPR RI), the government, and trade unions share the same goals in labour reform: improving worker welfare, expanding job opportunities, building conducive industrial relations, and encouraging businesses to grow and remain competitive.
Apindo Chairwoman Shinta W. Kamdani said changes in the economy, technology, industrial structure, and workforce competency needs demand a more adaptive and forward-looking Indonesian labour system.
“We all share the same aspirations: workers becoming more prosperous, job opportunities expanding, and businesses being able to grow healthily. Labour reform must ensure worker protection goes hand in hand with job creation, productivity improvement, and strengthening Indonesia’s competitiveness,” Shinta said in a written statement on Tuesday (25/8/2026).
Apindo views the availability of decent, productive, and sustainable jobs as a fundamental part of worker protection. Therefore, the Labour Protection and Job Expansion Bill must not only regulate existing employment relationships, but also build an ecosystem that supports investment, productivity, competency improvement, and the creation of broader and higher-quality formal employment.
This is increasingly important because Indonesia is still in a demographic bonus period while facing workforce transformation due to digitalisation, artificial intelligence, automation, changing business models, and the transition towards a green economy.
Apindo’s Head of Employment Affairs, Bob Azam, stressed that labour reform must not be framed as a choice between worker protection and business growth. According to him, worker protection and business competitiveness are not mutually exclusive interests.
“Good regulation must be able to protect workers, provide legal certainty, increase productivity, and enable companies to adapt, survive, grow, and create new jobs,” Bob added.
Apindo also encouraged increased state investment in vocational training, reskilling and upskilling, as well as strengthening the employment social security system. Competency development and social protection should be a shared responsibility between the government, businesses, and workers.
Apindo believes labour inspection remains an important authority and function of the government to ensure the fulfilment of workers’ rights and company compliance. However, supervision should be increasingly directed towards guidance, prevention, compliance capacity building, and effective and consistent law enforcement.
Apindo hopes the bill’s deliberation will be conducted inclusively, transparently, and based on data. The success of reform cannot be measured merely by the enactment of a new law, but by the growth of formal and quality jobs, improved worker welfare and competencies, strengthened social protection, increased productivity and investment, maintained business continuity, and stronger Indonesian competitiveness.
“This is not solely an agenda for employers or workers. This is an agenda for Indonesia’s future. We need to build a labour system capable of protecting workers, creating jobs, improving competencies, providing certainty, and responding to changes in the world of work,” Shinta concluded.