Legislator urges Employment Bill to minimise wage disparities

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Netty Prasetiyani, a member of Commission IX of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI), is pushing for the Employment Bill to formulate regulations capable of minimising disparities in minimum wages between regions. During a meeting of the Working Committee (Panja) for the Employment Bill under Commission IX of the DPR RI in Jakarta on Tuesday, Netty stated that there is currently an extreme gap in minimum wage levels between one regency and another, for example in West Java. “If we look now, from Bekasi City, Bekasi Regency, Karawang Regency, it’s already Rp5.8–5.9 (million), and so on. Imagine, Garut is Rp2.4 (million), Majalengka Rp2.3 (million), Banjar is similar. Yet they are still in the same province,” she said, according to a written statement. She is concerned that if this wage disparity is not addressed soon, it will lead to social imbalances and unhealthy labour competition, as well as triggering large-scale business relocations. She also warned of the sociological impacts of the high wage gap, from population migration to the potential relocation of factories to areas with lower wages. “Don’t let it happen where residents from Banjar, from Kendal, move to Karawang. Then the competition among the residents will be extraordinary, or the businesses move to those areas,” she said.