House passes labor bill
House passes labor bill
JAKARTA (JP): Workers will be able to go on strike without
fear of losing their wages or their Idul Fitri holiday bonus, as
they are now basic rights, if the much-altered manpower bill goes
into effect.
The House of Representatives passed the bill in a plenary
session yesterday, claiming significant changes to accommodate
the aspiration of workers.
The document will abolish 11 ordinances and laws on labor
affairs if it is enacted by the President and will go into effect
on Oct. 1, 1998. There has been no explanation as to why the bill
will go into effect on that date.
Weeks of intensive deliberation, under the pressure of limited
time and constant criticism of the bill from various corners,
ended yesterday and proved to be a draining experience for
Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief. He shed tears while delivering
his speech before the plenary session presided over by Deputy
House Speaker Ismail Hasan Metareum.
Outside the plenary hall, hundreds of workers representing the
Jakarta chapter of the government-backed All-Indonesia Workers
Union Federation (SPSI) rallied in support of the new bill. They
presented Latief with a garland of flowers as he was about to
leave the House.
Meters apart, a group of non-governmental organization (NGO)
activists calling themselves the Women's Group for Labor Justice
staged a demonstration. They expressed what they called
"condolence for the vanishing protection of workers' rights".
According to the bill, workers are allowed to go on strike if
their basic rights are not met without having to lose their
wages. The original draft submitted by the government said
workers should not be paid when they go on strike.
The government decided to include a bonus in connection with
the Idul Fitri holiday among workers' basic rights.
"It's a pitiful sight -- fasting workers stage a strike only
to seek some extra money so they can celebrate the holiday with
their families," Latief said sobbing.
He took a pause to wipe away tears before adding: "We hope the
decision will curb the number of such strikes."
The bill, however, bans strikes held on streets. Workers must
also notify both their employer and the government at least 72
hours before they strike.
Latief said that street rallies were vulnerable to "meddling
by certain parties" and not effective in solving problems.
"Street rallies are banned because we want the workers to
solve problems with their management at their workplaces and
through deliberation," Latief said.
A legislator from the United Development Party, Tosari Wijaya,
defended the bill's provision on strike procedures, saying that
even in Western countries such regulations were applied.
"The bill actually wants to prevent strikes and instead
suggests deliberation," said Tosari, also an executive of SPSI.
A maximum sentence of six months in jail and a maximum fine of
Rp 50 million (US$17,000) will be imposed on employers who take
punitive measures against the right to strike.
The bill allows workers to establish a trade union at their
respective factories. The government had insisted earlier that a
trade union had to receive support from a majority of workers,
but the House rejected it.
Those who prevent a group of people from establishing a trade
union face a maximum of two years in jail and a Rp 200 million
($68,000) fine.
The government names SPSI as the only recognized workers
organization in the country. According to the bill, a trade union
must register itself and provide names of its members to the
Ministry of Manpower.
Meanwhile, the Consortium of Migrant Worker Advocates
criticized the bill for lacking measures to protect Indonesian
workers who work abroad, particularly women.
"There is no basic change in the final draft of the bill
compared to the original one dealing with protection of female
workers who frequently fall prey to violence and sexual
harassment," the consortium said in its release.
It said the bill did not provide migrant workers with rights
to information, appropriate accommodations and other basic
rights. (amd)