Bank employees urged to form workers unions

JAKARTA (JP): Union leaders in the banking sector urged colleagues on Saturday to form unions in a desperate attempt to ease the impact of an expected layoff of some 30,000 workers in the near future.

In a statement on a policy of bank restructuring, the Association of Banking and Finance Workers Union also urged that unions be involved in daily banking operations to help ensure prudential banking.

It said this was needed because the monetary crisis was mainly caused by a "weakness of bank supervision by the Central Bank of abuses of authority among bank managements or owners", such as rampant violation of the legal lending limit.

The statement was issued at the association's first congress, which was opened here by its chairman, Indratjahja.

Set up last June, unions of at least 18 banks have joined the association. Many of the country's banks, last listed at 221 banks, do not have unions, the chairman said.

Separately, Minister of Manpower Fahmi Idris has reminded bank managements that all dismissals would have to go by the book, including negotiations with employees.

Indratjahja estimated 25,000 workers may be laid off from 40 private banks planned to be closed down by the government on Feb. 27.

He said this number excluded the possible dismissal of thousands of employees of state banks which are to be restructured and merged soon.

The government is planning to merge Bank Dagang Negara, Bank Pembangunan Indonesia, Bank Bumi Daya and Bank Expor Impor Indonesia into a newly established Bank Mandiri.

"The four ailing banks have a total workforce of more than 26,000, of which 10,000 to 12,000 may be laid off," said Indratjahja after opening the congress in Central Jakarta.

The statement also asserted the association was ready to help advocate the rights of employees affected by the restructuring policy and its preparedness to assist the setting up of unions.

It also demanded the involvement of unions to ensure employees' legal guarantee of rights in the bank restructuring, which will lead to dismissals.

The union also urged the review of a 1996 rule of the Ministry of Manpower which regulates minimum severance. In reality, managements refer to merely the minimum standard, the union said, which was no longer suitable in the current economic condition.

In Caringin, West Java, after opening a congress by the All- Indonesia Workers Union Federation on Saturday, the minister said that according to a 1964 law on worker dismissals, the layoffs should have prior approval from the Committee for the Settlement of Labor Disputes.

He added, "Workers to be dismissed should negotiate their rights, including severance pay, with bank managements."

Fahmi acknowledged that because of the economic crisis, the government could not do much in preventing the dismissals, while the only alternatives open for the workers were to enter entrepreneurial fields or to seek jobs abroad.

Among the banks whose unions have joined the association are Bank Patriot, Bank Rama, Bank Bintang Manunggal, Deutsche Bank AG Jakarta, BNP Lippo Indonesia, Bank Sakura Swadarma, Indosuez Indonesia Bank, Bank Muamalat Indonesia and Bank Tiara Asia.

Indratjahja said poor negotiating skills among employees was one issue to be immediately tackled through training.

Besides knowledge of rights, legal procedures and companies' philosophy and financial reports, Indratjahja said, employees also had to "overcome psychological hindrances, such as being afraid of the boss..."

Managerial-level employees who remain jobless can perhaps live on their severance pay for 18 months, but lower-level workers can live on this for only a half year, he said.

"People may resort to disruptive and undesirable actions in desperation once their severance pay starts to run out. We have to curb this together," he said. (edt/rms)