Hospital staff complain about ban on labor unions

Hospital staff complain about ban on labor unions

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Workers from dozens of hospitals in the capital organized a
media conference on Thursday to protest their employers' move to
halt their plan to establish workers' unions as an instrument for
promoting their aspirations and welfare.

Coordinator of the Communication Forum for Hospital Workers in
the Capital (FKPRSJ) Edi Waluyo said the managements' moves
ranged from intimidation and delayed promotion to dismissing
workers who were active in the union.

The hospitals include Pondok Indah Hospital, Jakarta Hospital,
Kebayoran Hospital, Pantai Indah Kapuk Hospital, Setia Mitra
Hospital and Medika Gria Hospital.

Edi, who is also chairman of the Pondok Indah Workers Union
(SPTP) said the management established a rival organization known
as the Employees' Family Association (SPIKK) only a week after
the SPTP was established.

"The management of Pondok Indah Hospital, as stated by the
corporate lawyer, has refused to recognize an independent worker
union established by the workers although it has been recognized
by the government," Edi added.

Edi and another union activist, Muchsin, from Pondok Indah
Hospital in South Jakarta, have been suspended as hospital
employees since May for motivating the other employees to join
the workers union.

Another complaint was expressed by Opet Omahora, a worker
activist from the Jakarta Hospital, who said she and 26 other
worker activists had been suspended from their jobs since 2,000
after they had demonstrated to demand an increase in transport
and food allowances.

"Following the demonstration, 27 worker activists in my
hospital were suspended and the management is seeking our
dismissal. At present, we do not receive a salary although the
dismissal has not been agreed by the government," she added.

Muchsin said management often misunderstood the wishes of
workers to establish a trade union. They always linked trade
unions with demonstrations and violent activities carried out by
workers.

"We want to establish the unions, not to provoke the workers
into opposing the management, but to become a forum to promote
our welfare," said Muchsin, who works at the information
technology division at Pondok Indah hospital.

He said like other workers in other sectors, hospital workers
also experienced various problems with their management, ranging
from inadequate salaries or health insurance, discrimination, and
unfair dismissal.

Lilien Listiowati is an example. She has been working at
Kebayoran Hospital as a nurse for 11 years. Ironically, the
hospital cannot give her adequate health service if she gets sick
simply because she is a woman.

According to Lilien, the management provides only Rp 7,000 as
a monthly health allowance and should she be hospitalized, the
hospital can only pay out Rp 250,000 for buying medicine.

Lilien, who graduated from a medical academy in 1990,
currently receives only Rp 350,000 in take-home pay from the
hospital.

Another example involves Surasno, a worker at Setia Mitra
hospital. He said because of financial problems experienced by
the hospital, many of workers had been forced to retire before
their retirement age of 55.

"The hospitals prepared early retirement compensation for some
workers although they had not agreed to retire," he said, adding
that the management's policy had caused anxiety among the
hospital's workers.