Labour Minister warns of sanctions for companies failing to comply with THR regulations
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Minister of Manpower (Menaker) Yassierli has warned of sanctions for companies that fail to comply with regulations on the provision of religious holiday allowances (THR) to workers.
“As a rule-of-law state, all companies are obliged to adhere to applicable provisions and ensure that workers’ rights are fulfilled properly,” said Menaker Yassierli in a statement in Jakarta on Wednesday.
He emphasised that THR is a normative right of workers/labourers that must be paid in full and cannot be deducted for any reason, including due to absenteeism or the company’s economic condition.
“THR must not be deducted. There is a misunderstanding when THR is linked to absenteeism, and that is not permissible,” said the Minister.
He added that if there is a delay in payment, employers will be fined 5 percent of the total THR that must be paid.
That fine does not eliminate the obligation to pay THR and is used for the welfare of workers/labourers in accordance with applicable provisions.
According to him, every company is obliged to comply with statutory regulations because Indonesia is a rule-of-law state that places the protection of workers’ rights as an obligation that must be fulfilled.
This week, Minister Yassierli conducted a surprise inspection (sidak) at negligent companies, one of which was in Semarang Regency, Central Java.
This followed reports that workers’ THR at that company was not paid in full.
He urged the company to immediately settle the remaining unpaid THR.
From the meeting with management, the company employing around 951 workers expressed its commitment to complete the payments by 2 April 2026 at the latest.
The case stemmed from a complaint received by the Religious THR Command Post 2026 of the Ministry of Manpower (Kemnaker) on 16 March 2026. In the report, the company was complained about for not having paid THR despite having passed the payment deadline of seven days before the religious holiday.
After follow-up by labour inspectors, the company made a payment on 18 March 2026. However, a follow-up report emerged that the payment was not made in full.
During the sidak, the Minister obtained information that the THR payment not in accordance with the provisions was based on the company’s poor economic condition, as well as a misunderstanding linking THR to workers’ attendance levels.
Yassierli asserted that such reasons are unjustifiable, and cases like this must not recur, either at that company or others.
“Things like this must not happen again. I warn that similar practices should not occur at any company,” said the Minister.
“This year, we will continue to monitor closely to ensure all workers’ rights are paid in accordance with applicable regulations,” he added.