Few employees greet salary increase warmly

Few employees greet salary increase warmly

JAKARTA (JP): City administration employees are responding
coolly to the government's decision to raise the salary of civil
servants by up to 10 percent starting this month.

They feel that the raise will not change their economic
situation because it is too small and because commodity prices
were raised long before the announcement.

"I am happy with the raise but to tell you the truth, it will
not change my life because the price of most substantial
commodities have been increased since December," Jauhari, an
employee of the city administration, told The Jakarta Post
yesterday.

"Instead of increasing basic salaries," he said, "it would
have been better for the government to increase welfare
payments."

Ali, another city administration employee said that the raise
will have a negative impact.

"The price of commodities will increase. I would rather have
had an unannounced hike," Ali said.

President Soeharto announced the salary raise on Thursday when
presenting the 1995/96 state budget plan to the House of
Representatives.

The President said that the increase would be carried out in
two stages; the salary raise of Class I and II civil servants
(the lowest echelons) will come into effect as of this month and
those in Classes III and IV as of April.

Jauhari, who has been working as civil servant since 1975,
said that he would have never become a civil servant given the
choice.

"I do not want to be a civil servant but I had no choice. It
is hard to get another job," he said.

He is now in Class III with a basic salary of Rp 194,000. With
benefits included he can take home Rp 251,000 per month, which is
not enough to feed his family.

"As with any other civil servant, the one who gets the
headache is my wife because she has to manage the money," Jauhari
said, adding that he has to work extra hours for more money.

Jauhari said that he chose to live in Bogor because the cost
of living there is lower than Jakarta, even though he has spend
two hours every day in a crowded train.

"It is cheaper that way, even with the long commute," he
added.(yns)