Ministry urged to improve manpower system

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government should not lift the prohibition on sending semi- skilled workers (TKIs) overseas as long as the manpower ministry is unable to improve its poor delivery system, says a labor export service association.

"If the government is not ready to improve the current procedure, any decision to send TKIs abroad would be pointless as the system remains poor," the head of the Association of Indonesian Labor Export Suppliers (Himsataki) Yunus Moh. Yamani was quoted by Antara as saying here on Saturday.

According to him, in order to improve the system for sending workers abroad, the government must revamp the Workers Placement Service Office (BPPTKI) and manpower offices at the regency level.

The government should also dissolve the special unit at the immigration office, which issues special passports to overseas workers, he said.

"The passport should be general, so that workers could work around the world freely. The passport should also be issued where workers hold a citizenship card," Yunus said.

Yunus also urged the government to determine standards for the Ministry of Manpower's Workers Skills Training Center (BLKLN), to improve its curriculum and to establish an independent monitoring and evaluating team on TKIs.

The Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration must also seriously implement Decree No. 104A/2002 that obliges labor exporters to renew their master agreement with their overseas partner, according to Yunus.

It must also ensure that labor exporters protect their workers by providing lawyers in overseas countries where the TKIs work, Yunus said.

"Without any improvement in these aspects, it would be better for the government not to send workers abroad to be employed in the informal sector," he said.

Manpower minister Jacob Nuwa Wea has discontinued the sending of overseas workers that work in the informal sector such as domestic helpers, baby sitters and care givers for the elderly until the middle of March to give labor export companies the opportunity to improve their performance.

The prohibition was necessary as part of efforts to improve workers skills, said Jacob.

The sending of skilled workers overseas is still permitted.

However, Jacob told reporters recently that his ministry would permit the sending of unskilled workers abroad in mid-March.

Meanwhile, manpower analyst Fachri Thaharuddin said the Ministry of Manpower should focus on BLKLN accreditation and the establishment of an independent assessment team.

"Accreditation is necessary to improve the quality of BLKLN, while the independent assessment team will select workers to be sent overseas," he said.

Yunus also questioned the effectiveness of the suspension of the sending of unskilled workers abroad, saying that some BPPTKIs continued to issue passport recommendations to labor export companies.

"So what is the suspension for actually, if the government office violates it," he said.