Government reviews proposal to raise lecturer salaries to improve welfare

The Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology (Kemdiktisaintek) is reviewing the possibility of improving the welfare of lecturers in Indonesia, responding to a proposal to increase their salaries to between Rp20 million and Rp50 million per month.

“Yes, of course the government is very focused on the welfare of lecturers and we are continuously carrying out evaluation processes,” said Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology Brian Yuliarto in Jakarta on Thursday.

He stated that his ministry will continue to seek various approaches to create welfare for lecturers in Indonesia. This follows the ministry’s resumption of performance allowance (tukin) payments for lecturers in 2025, after the programme had previously been halted.

Previously, the Indonesian Lecturers and Academicians Association (Adaksi) proposed that lecturers should earn between Rp20 million and Rp50 million per month. Adaksi Chairman Anggun Gunawan explained that the proposal was based on a standard income concept that allows a lecturer to meet their family’s living needs while carrying out their academic duties, known as a floor living wage.

Meanwhile, the Campus Workers Union (SPK) has asked the Constitutional Court to interpret the base salary for lecturers under Law Number 14 of 2005 on Teachers and Lecturers as being at least equal to the minimum wage applicable in the region where the higher education institution operates.

“The 2003 Manpower Law provides clear parameters through the minimum wage so that workers can live decently. However, when the 2005 Teachers and Lecturers Law was enacted, the term shifted to minimum living needs, but concrete parameters were never established. That is the root of the problem,” said Rizma.