More levies imposed on foreign workers

JAKARTA (JP): The government has issued a decree requiring expatriates working in Indonesia to pay US$100 a month during the period of their working contract.

The money will finance vocational training programs for local workers, spokesman for the manpower ministry Sutanto told reporters yesterday.

The levy is a condition of obtaining a work permit in Indonesia and will have to be paid by the worker's employer before they get the necessary working permit.

The decree became effective as of Jan. 1, 1997 Sutanto said.

Sutanto said the new ruling was issued as a directive to Presidential Decree No. 75 of 1996 on the recruitment of foreign workers.

The presidential decree regulates positions, in companies whose shares are wholly owned by local investors or partly and wholly owned by foreign investors, which can be filled by foreign workers.

It also regulates the "Indonesianization" of positions in the companies as well as levies imposed on foreign workers.

Sutanto said the ministry would soon have a separate directorate to manage the funds and conduct vocational training programs for local workers.

"All this is aimed at anticipating the future need of quality human resources to enable Indonesia to compete in the international market," he said.

He said the new decree annulled the previous Ministerial Decree No 143A requiring expatriates to pay $150 a month to extend their working contracts.

The 37,590 expatriates currently working in Indonesia are expected to contribute around $3,75 million a month to the vocational training programs. (rms)