Court ruling on HongkongBank unionists stands

JAKARTA (JP): The only resort left for 11 dismissed HongkongBank unionists is to appeal to the Jakarta Administrative High Court, a Ministry of Manpower official says.

I Wayan Nedeng, head of the Ministry's arbitration body which issued the decision on Sept. 30, said the ruling stands because the minister had not vetoed the decision within 14 days.

"But the employees can still appeal within 90 days," he said.

He was responding to a request from an international union based in Geneva, Switzerland, which asked Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief to annul the decision.

A union representative said the decision violates International Labor Organization conventions on the right to form unions and to set collective labor agreements.

Christopher Ng, regional secretary of the Apro-FIET union, said the organization had launched a campaign in solidarity of HongkongBank employees.

Apro-FIET is the Asia Pacific regional organization of the International Federation of Commercial, Clerical, Professional and Technical Employees.

Wayan defended the decision, which critics said was illegal. Lawyer Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara and unionists referred to a 1996 ruling which forbids union executives or members of a team who are negotiating with the management to be dismissed.

The 11 unionists, chaired by Ugianto, were negotiating a new collective labor agreement with the management. A strike involving 189 employees erupted in April when employees heard the unionists were about to be dismissed.

Wayan stressed the decision permitted the management of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp.Ltd. to dismiss Ugianto and his colleagues in their capacity as individual employees responsible for instigating the strike.

"So the decision is not against the law," he said.

He said their roles as employees and union executives could be separated, but did not elaborate.

He denied allegations the ruling contradicted the body's earlier that the management must reinstate the 189 employees.

"We clearly separated those involved in the strike and those responsible for instigating it," he said.

The management appealed to the Jakarta Administrative High Court, and many of the workers remain unemployed. Others have either found other jobs or have agreed to voluntary retirement offers.

Wayan denied the body's ruling had virtually dissolved the union.

The arbitration body voted on the decision consensus could not be reached. All five members of the All-Indonesia Workers Union Federation rejected the decision, he said.

Other members of the body are five members representing employers, and five others from the government.

The decision also said the strike violated procedures. According to a 1957 dispute settlement law the arbitration body's regional board must be notified of a strike three days before it starts. The regional board must then notify the central board, Wayan said.

In the case of the Hong Kong Bank strike, the arbitration body's Jakarta boards was only notified one day before the strike occurred on April 17, he said. (anr)