Apindo Urges Government to Conduct Comprehensive Study Before Ratifying ILO Platform Work Convention
The Indonesian Employers’ Association (Apindo) has urged the government to conduct a comprehensive study, including a regulatory impact assessment (RIA), before ratifying the convention on decent work in the platform ecosystem. Apindo’s Deputy Chair for Employment, Darwoto, explained that the convention was one of the agreements reached during the 114th session of the International Labour Conference (ILC). Despite being adopted by consensus, Darwoto noted that member states are not automatically bound to implement the convention, as it requires ratification.
Prior to ratification, Darwoto emphasised the importance of assessing the social and economic impacts of implementing the convention. He argued that such a study is crucial to produce appropriate and proportional regulations, aiming to sustain and enhance economic growth generated from the digital ecosystem.
Darwoto highlighted a key consensus approved in the convention text by all member states, which states that the legal relationship status of platform workers cannot be forced using a one-size-fits-all approach. He said the convention agrees on broad flexibility for member states in determining the legal relationship status of platform workers. The convention does not mandate that platform workers must be classified as employees; they can also be independent entrepreneurs, with proportional rights and obligations recognised according to their legal status.
He urged that the selection of legal status categories be carefully considered and adapted to the context, unique characteristics, and needs of employment and human resource development in Indonesia. According to him, the impact will be significant on the availability of job opportunities and access to efficient and beneficial services for the public as platform users.
Darwoto stated that Apindo is committed to supporting the strengthening of social protection and welfare for all workers, including those in the digital ecosystem. However, Apindo cautioned that ideal and sustainable worker protection can only be realised with the availability of broad employment opportunities. He also referenced President Prabowo Subianto’s target of creating 19 million new jobs within five years. Meanwhile, data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) as of February 2026 indicated that the country’s open unemployment rate remained at 4.68 percent, equivalent to 7.24 million people.
Darwoto assessed that overly strict protection regulations risk killing a growing industry if not accompanied by an ecosystem capable of absorbing labour. Therefore, he encouraged the government to formulate progressive policies focused on creating the widest possible employment opportunities. According to him, such policies must be implemented through support for economic growth, ease of investment bureaucracy, and a safe space for technological innovation.