Bekasi expects surge in migrant job seekers

The Bekasi municipal administration predicts that 10,000 people will have arrived in the city to seek jobs by the end of this month.

"A big increase in job seekers usually occurs after the Idul Fitri holiday, because residents usually bring along their unemployed relatives or friends from their hometowns to seek jobs here," head of Bekasi Manpower Agency Ruswan Sunarya said on Monday.

On normal days, Ruswan Sunarya said his office issued up to 300 of the cards required of job seekers. These had to be renewed every year, with each specifying its holder's identity, education and skills. After Idul Fitri, the number of cards issued usually rose to up to 1,000 per day.

As of November, the agency had issued around 48,000 cards, "but there are only 1,526 vacancies," Ruswan said.

Unemployment in Bekasi is already high and is increasing. In 2003, the manpower agency recorded 43,000 job seekers, while the number of available vacancies only amounted to 4,155.

Ruswan added that the unemployment level had been increased by continual industrial layoffs.

Bekasi, a Jakarta satellite town together with Tangerang and Depok, attracts large numbers of job seekers as it's home to 12 industrial zones occupied by 1,700 industrial undertakings that employ 345,000 workers. -- JP