Employers to pay Idul Fitri bonuses

Employers to pay Idul Fitri bonuses

SEMARANG, Central Java: The Ministry of Manpower's provincial
office is confident that local companies will pay Idul Fitri
bonuses to their Moslem employees, Antara has reported.

Office director Andi Usman said he had not received any
requests from employers asking for an exemption from the
obligation to pay the bonuses. "This means companies have agreed
to pay the bonuses," he was quoted by the news agency as saying
yesterday.

Manpower ministry rules stipulate that a company may ask for
an exemption two months before the Moslem holiday -- which is
expected to fall on Jan. 30 and Jan. 31 this year -- along with
reasons for the request.

"This is an encouraging development," he said.

A company's failure to pay Idul Fitri bonuses has often led to
labor strikes in the past.

The province has 770,000 workers in 4,000 large and small
companies scattered throughout its 35 regencies.

According to the government, a total of 2,400 workers have
lost their jobs between April and December due to the monetary
crisis. The official figure, however, is much smaller than the
one reported by the Federation of All-Indonesian Workers Union,
which has said that as many as 40,000 had lost their jobs over
the past six months. (swe)