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)