IBRA workers don't deserve severance pay: Ex-minister

IBRA workers don't deserve severance pay: Ex-minister

Ridwan Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

None of the employees of the Indonesian Banking Restructuring
Agency (IBRA), scheduled to be liquidated on Feb. 27, are legally
eligible for, nor do the deserve, severance pay because their
employment was contract-based, says a former labor minister.

"Seen from the legal and ethical points of view, IBRA
officials and employees are clearly not entitled to severance pay
because they were hired on a temporary contract, and, of course,
they have already been paid extremely well," Bomer Pasaribu told
The Jakarta Post here on Tuesday.

He added that Law No. 13/2003 on labor regulates that only
permanent workers are entitled to severance pay.

Bomer said he was deeply concerned that IBRA, which has been
called a nest of corruptors and a cash cow for certain officials,
had already paid the highest salaries among government
institutions in the country. Despite that, they are demanding a
huge amount of severance and service payments amidst the still
difficult economic conditions.

"I cannot understand how such a corrupt government institution
that has been a hotbed of corruptors and showed poor performance
since its establishment in 1998, can dare to demand such
outrageous compensation, even though people all around them are
impoverished," he lambasted, after citing IBRA data that it had
been able to recoup only 24 percent, or Rp 160 trillion, of the
state assets worth over Rp 650 trillion.

IBRA officials have been paid between Rp 40 million and Rp 100
million per month, while other employees have received between Rp
5 million and Rp 20 million.

IBRA Chairman Syafruddin A. Tumenggung said he had recently
proposed Rp 500 billion from the government for pay severance
payments for around 2,500 employees (an average of Rp 200 million
per person) following planned liquidation on Feb. 27.

The proposal has sparked protests from many people, including
Vice President Hamzah Haz and Minister of State Enterprises
Laksamana Sukardi. Hamzah suggested that the severance pay be
based on IBRA's performance.

Manpower and Transmigration Minister Jacob Nuwa Wea said it
was far too excessive and unfair to all the people who actually
deserve it.

"The huge amount for just 2,500 employees is excessive and
unfair if compared to US$50 million (Rp 43 billion) proposed for
6,600 dismissed workers of ailing state-owned aircraft
manufacturer PT Dirgantara Indonesia," he said.

Bomer called on the State Officials Asset Audit Agency (KPKPN)
to audit all IBRA officials' wealth before the institution was
liquidated.

"The public has long been suspicious of rampant corruption at
IBRA and they owe it to the public to become completely
transparent and accountable before their mandate is finished," he
said.