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.