ILO Convention

One ILO (International Labor Organization) Convention ratified by Indonesia stipulates that a minimum of 10 employees is needed to form a union. According to the new Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea, though this is realistic in a small country such as Belgium, it is irrelevant for a big country such as Indonesia. Blaming this ILO Convention for being at the core of the problem of the mushrooming of trade unions in Indonesia is totally wrong. The superficies of a country has nothing to do with the goals pursued by that ILO Convention.

The rightful meaning of that Convention is: Simply to allow workers of a company having at least 10 employees to form a workers' union within their company.

However, in democratic countries such as Belgium, there is no phenomena of trade union mushrooming. Belgium has only three important trade unions (FGTB/socialist-left wing, CSC/Christian wing and CGSP/Liberal-right wing). These 10 (Belgian and foreign) employees will join one of these three unions instead of creating their own trade union. So, this Convention is favorable as it gives the right to workers in small and medium-sized companies to affiliate themselves to one trade union.

If in certain developing countries such as Indonesia some people are using that Convention in a truncated way, this is not the fault of the ILO. This is the fault of the government officials who are simply watching some people forming so many different workers' organizations, knowing well this is inefficient. It is just confusing the workers more and more in their fight to achieve better conditions from their employers.

By the way, the employers still have only one association (APINDO). Why? Because in a developing country such as Indonesia, it is not needed to confuse the employers. Employers simply don't have to face any strong and well-organized trade union, as is still the case in Indonesia. Mushrooming of trade unions is good for the employers.

Instead, the new manpower minister could have reminded the press that all the existing trade unions in Indonesia are not recognized internationally (by the ICFTU) as trade unions. Why? Because none of them originated from a group of real workers. Even the new minister is from such a trade union. So, what can a real labor activist expect in Indonesia today?

YVAN MAGAIN

Belgium