Former HI, Hotel Wisata employees may be rehired

Former HI, Hotel Wisata employees may be rehired

Leony Aurora, Jakarta

The conflict between Hotel Indonesia and Inna Wisata Hotel
workers' union and the hotels' old management is seeing a
resolution with both sides in agreement that former employees
will be given priority by the new management when hiring begins.

However, only some 276 employees who until now are still
rejecting their dismissal will receive such treatment, said the
union's secretary-general Soeryanto on Tuesday after a meeting
with the management, manpower agency officials and House of
Representatives member Rekso Ageng Herman.

"Those who have already received severance pay will not get
this privilege," said Soeryanto.

Some 1,300 employees were dismissed following the takeover of
both hotels from PT Hotel Indonesia Natour by PT Cipta Karya Bumi
Indah (CKBI), a subsidiary of cigarette giant Djarum group.

Under a 30-year build-operate-transfer scheme, PT CKBI, with
an investment of US$150 million, will replace Inna Wisata with a
super mall and renovate Hotel Indonesia in keeping with its
original design. The projects will take one to two years to
finish.

The dismissed workers demanded to be rehired after the
renovation is finished, claiming there will be between 8,000 and
10,000 new job openings in the hotel and new mall.

Herman, who instigated Tuesday's meeting, said that he would
sit on the management's team to select eligible employees as
requested by the union.

Although the meeting has resolved several issues, some other
problems still need to be worked out.

"The union needs to talk to its members about the options
offered while the management has to consult the investor," said
Herman, declining to elaborate on the remaining problems
discussed in the meeting.

Soeryanto hinted that other problems included the amount of
severance pay, saying that the union had to recalculate its
demand. "I can't say how much we're asking for," he told The
Jakarta Post.

The old management had agreed to give severance pay to
dismissed employees of up to 150 percent of what they would be
entitled to under Article 156 of Law No. 13/2003 on manpower.

Despite this decision, the union would try to get an even
higher amount, said Soeryanto. "The employees' salaries were
below the standard of five-star hotels."

For example, Soeryanto said, as a cost control manager he
received Rp 1.2 million ($139.53) a month while a manager in
other hotels would be paid between Rp 5 million and Rp 6 million
a month.

Soeryanto further said that even though the employees would be
rehired, they would still receive severance pay.

"The payment and rehiring are totally separate ... one is
conducted by the old management and the other by the new one," he
added.

Another bipartite meeting between the hotels' board of
directors and the union is set to take place on Thursday. If this
meeting fails, another one has been scheduled for Friday at the
House with Herman as mediator.