Companies must improve workers' safety: Mega
Companies must improve workers' safety: Mega
M. Taufiqurrahman and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post,
Jakarta
President Megawati Soekarnoputri called on companies in Indonesia
to significantly improve the safety of their workers following
reports about the increasing number of fatalities occurring at
workplaces.
The President made the statement on Monday in response to a
recent report by the International Labor Organization (ILO),
which shows that Indonesia's safety standards are the worst in
Southeast Asia as it has the highest number of accidents
occurring at workplaces across the country.
"The report shows that in the first semester of 2002, 57,000
accidents took place at companies throughout the country, which
translates into more than 300 accidents a day," she said.
Workers' social insurance company PT Jamsostek reported that
the total number of accidents in 2001 reached 104,000 with more
than a thousand fatalities and hundreds of workers suffering
permanent injuries.
Emphasizing the dire need for worker's protection, Megawati
urged companies to strive toward a zero accident record at their
workplaces if they wanted to see their businesses flourish.
The latest report from the Occupational Safety and Health
Council shows that of 16,000 local companies, only 80 of them had
complied with regulations and had been granted zero accident
certification.
Earlier on Monday, Minister of Manpower and Transmigration
Jacob Nuwa Wea vowed that the ministry would not hesitate to
take stern action against any company violating standard safety
measures for workers.
He said that the government would punish companies that had a
high number of accidents, based on Law No. 1/1970 on work safety.
Nuwa Wea, however, did not elaborate on what actions would be
taken against violators as he was fully aware that the existing
laws on work safety were too lenient, prompting companies to
ignore them.
"The government lacks the personnel to oversee the law's
implementation, and to complicate matters, some of the officials
practice corruption, collusion and nepotism with the business
owners," he said at a convention promoting occupational safety
and health (OSH) standards.
The minister also pointed out that a lack of discipline among
workers and business owners contributed to the increasing number
of work-related accidents and illnesses.
"During a recent trip to a cigarette company in Kediri (in
East Java), I witnessed workers who were not wearing face masks
while making cigarettes, with the knowledge of their foreman," he
said.
"The most important factor (in promoting workers' safety)
is workers' awareness, and officials and businesspeople willingly
abiding by the regulations without pressure from the government,"
he said.
In the case of raising workers' awareness, the ministry has
gained the support of the ILO.
"The ministry should embark on an education campaign to raise
the awareness of workers' safety," said the ILO representative
for Indonesia Alan Bolton.
Poor safety conditions have added to the woes workers are
saddled with as they struggle harder to earn a low income amid
the recent increase of utility prices.