Employers blamed for labor unrest

Employers blamed for labor unrest

JAKARTA: The government-backed All Indonesian Workers Union (SPSI) has blamed businesses for the increasing number of industrial strikes over the last two months.

"Workers will not take industrial actions if employers respect their rights. They will not go on strike to demand something which is not their right," Deputy Secretary General Wilhelmus Bhoka said here yesterday.

He said tens of thousands of workers in Java and North Sumatra went on strike over the last two months to dramatize their demands for better wages. He added that many employers are still not complying with the government regulation that increased minimum daily wages.

"The waves of industrial strikes will not cease as long as what they demand is not met by their companies," he said.

According to Bhoka, most of the labor strikes were masterminded by "a third party," or students and non-governmental organizations. (rms)