Govt, House review controversial labor bills

Govt, House review controversial labor bills

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government and the House of Representatives are being
battered by a tidal wave of criticism over their stance during
the continuing debate of two labor bills, and are being accused
by some of favoritism in response to labor pressures, making
changes and even omissions to a number of contentious issues
included in the bills.

"We have tried to accommodate all aspirations aired both by
labor unions and employers," Minister of Manpower and
Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea said in a press conference here on
Friday.

Labor unions have proposed more changes to the two bills than
employers did.

Concerning the bill on labor development and protection, the
government represented by Jacob and the House's special committee
reading the bill, have agreed to review a number of contentious
issues on, among others, worker rights, negotiations, industrial
strikes and child labor.

Employers are allowed to employ child laborers for three hours
maximum a day under the supervision of their parents and provided
there are appropriate labor conditions, are obliged to provide
safe transportation for women workers, adequate rest time and
short- and long-term vacation for workers.

The rest or pleasure time is given half an hour after four
hours of work, while the annual vacation is set at 12 working
days.

Employers are also obliged to give a three-month long-term
vacation for workers employed at least six years consecutively,
but this ruling will only prevail for certain companies that will
later be regulated by ministerial decree.

During the last meeting on Thursday, the government and the
House decided to postpone the deliberation of several other
contentious issues on severance and service payments for
dismissed and resigning workers, worshiping and breastfeeding
times, facilities at the workplace and payment for striking
workers because of the contrasting perspectives among factions in
the committee.

Several chapters on social security, labor guidance and labor
protection were phased out because these issues have already been
regulated by other laws.

Concerning the bill on settlement of industrial disputes, the
government and the House's special committee deliberating the
bill agreed to insert a new chapter allowing labor unions to act
as lawyers and to accompany workers to the labor court.

The new chapter accommodates worker proposals with the
reasoning that both workers and labor unions are financially
unable to retain professional lawyers to accompany them to court.

The bill also gives more emphasis to unanimous bipartite
settlements of industrial disputes rather than through the labor
court which would involve more time and cost.

Workers are also allowed to settle their disputes with their
employers unanimously through mediation, conciliation and
arbitration and all decisions made under such mechanisms are
binding and less expensive than litigation.

The bill also stipulates that trials of labor cases appealed
to the Supreme Court be conducted by the Chief Justice, and ad
hoc judges representing workers and employers and Court clerks.
Ad hoc judges are, however, barred from employment by labor
unions.

Djimanto, deputy chairman of the Indonesian Employers'
Association (Apindo), warned the government and the House against
capital flight and industrial relocation to other countries
resulting from of passage of the prolabor bills.

"Apindo has several times cautioned the government against
possible industrial relocation that could cause a massive layoff
at home, in addition to other social problems," he told The
Jakarta Post.