Govt sets up overseas worker body

Govt sets up overseas worker body

JAKARTA: President Megawati Soekarnoputri was expected to sign
a presidential decree which establishes a new body tasked with
placing and protecting Indonesian workers overseas by June at the
latest, Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea
said on Monday.

Jacob told reporters after meeting Megawati at the State
Palace that the extra government body would be directly involved
in the recruitment and placement of migrant workers, a job
currently carried out by private labor export agencies, which
have at times come under intense criticism for their handling of
workers.

According to Jacob, the agencies had made little effort to
ensure the qualifications or the safety of the workers.

"All this time, workers were just sent abroad without proper
preparation or training.. in terms of quality, our workers could
barely compete with counterparts from other countries," he said.

The body will fall under Megawati's supervision and will
comprise, among others, immigration and home affairs officials,
as well as professionals and representatives of the private labor
export agencies. --JP