Astek plans to collect on insurance premium due

Astek plans to collect on insurance premium due

JAKARTA (JP): The state insurance company PT Astek has warned
some 20,000 companies who owe them Rp 64.5 billion in arrears to
pay up, pay hefty interest, or face prosecution.

Astek's operation director Boedi Maryoto told reporters
yesterday that the company is bent on collecting all the arrears
for the premium on its Jamsostek, the social security program for
its workers.

Most of the companies who are not meeting their monthly
obligations are located in Jakarta, Boedi said. The Rp 64.5
billion are the arrears for between six to 14 months.

Astek will first impose two percent interest on the amount
owed by each company, and if this still does not compel them to
pay, Astek will initiate court proceedings, he said.

Company owners may face a maximum penalty of Rp 50 million or
six months imprisonment for breaking the 1992 law on the social
security program.

Some 50,000 out of 148,000 companies in Indonesia have
enlisted their workers under the Jamsostek program. Astek, which
has a virtual monopoly in the business of workers' insurance, has
collected a total of Rp 1.7 trillion in insurance premiums.

Boedi said these companies have no reason not to pay,
especially since they have been given a long grace period. The
only excuse is if they go bankrupt.

The premium each company pays towards insuring their workers
went up when Astek changed its scheme from Astek to Jamsostek,
which is a more comprehensive insurance program. The higher
premium has been cited as the reason for many companies'
reluctance to pay.

Boedi said they plan to send out its officers to visit and
talk to the companies who are not paying up. (rms)