Minister delays labor law due to fear of rallies
JAKARTA (JP): Under the threat of massive labor rallies, Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Al-Hilal Hamdi decided on Wednesday to delay for 14-days the implementation of a ministerial decree annulling severance pay and service fees to retired or dismissed workers.
The decision to delay Decree No. 78/2001 was reached after the first of what labor unions had promised to be a string of labor rallies and strikes.
About 3,000 demonstrators from the All-Indonesia Workers Union Federation (FSPSI) started camping in front of the minister's office on Jl. Gatot Subroto, South Jakarta in the morning.
Traffic jams became unavoidable as the demonstrators refused to leave before meeting the minister who was initially unavailable.
While waiting they lowered the national flag to show their anguish over the decree.
"We want the minister to revoke the decree and we want it now," Serang-chapter FSPSI member Syafrudin said, as quoted by Antara during Tuesday's rally.
Later in the afternoon, representatives of the demonstrators, headed by FSPSI chairman Jacob Nua, succeeded in meeting Al- Hilal.
The minister said during the meeting that he would delay its implementation and use the two-week grace period to review the decree.
The new decree is a revision of Ministerial Decree No. 150/2000 which stipulated a generous payout upon an employee parting with the company, either through retirement or dismissal.
The 2000 decree received objections from employers which prompted the ministry to revise it, though its revision has subsequently come under fire from labor unions who have charged the office of buckling under the pressure of investors.
The revisions included a clause annulling the requirement of employers to provide severance pay and service fees to workers who either resign or are sacked for committing major violations. The workers will only be provided with compensation money.
Compensation
Meanwhile, workers enrolled in pension fund programs will not receive service payment, but only severance and compensation pay.
The initial decree, issued by Al-Hilal's predecessor Bomer Pasaribu, stipulated that compensation consisted of basic annual leave, along with financial support for transport, health and housing facilities.
Workers can receive severance and service payment, the amount of which would be adjusted according to their working duration.
Separately in Malang, East Java, the FSPSI branch in the regency revealed further plans for a strike.
Its chairman, Rendra Kresna, told journalists that they will commence a three-day strike on Monday.
He argued that companies in the area are not beset with financial troubles and can pay their workers in accordance to the latest decree, saying the requirement to give such payments is only proper.
"I don't understand why the government revised the decree. Al- Hilal is acting like a business minister and not a minister representing the country's employees," he said.(bby)