Governor to raise minimum wage

SEMARANG: Governor Mardiyanto said on Saturday he would bow to demands to increase the 2001 minimum monthly salary of workers in the province from the earlier decreed Rp 234,000.

Mardiyanto told hundreds of workers who had rallied in the compound of his office the new minimum wage would be announced by the end of the year after consultations with related institutions.

The employees, from the Federation of North Coast Workers Solidarity and the Indonesian Independent Trade Union, denounced the original 2001 minimum wage enacted by the governor through a decree. They said the salary was unfair and violated human rights.

In a statement read to the governor, the protesters said regional autonomy, which authorizes governors to set minimum wages, had failed to live up to the expectations of workers, instead bringing rulers closer to business owners, Antara reported. (amd)