'Most workers do not know their rights'

Migrant workers suffer from harsh mistreatment by their employers as a result of the poor recruitment system. Worker recruitment agencies, supposedly responsible for the system, appear only to consider profit. The Jakarta Post talked to some people about the issue.

Ana, 33, is an entrepreneur who lives in Pejaten, South Jakarta:

It seems both the worker recruitment agencies and the government have taken advantage of migrant workers.

Most workers do not know their rights. They have no idea to whom and why they pay the "service charge" upon their arrival at Terminal III of the (Soekarno-Hatta International) airport.

The agencies and government leave them uninformed so that the workers can be victimized by greedy and corrupt officials.

The government only issues permit for the agencies but fails to monitor their activities.

Worse, the agencies force migrant workers to pay a lot of money but give them no explanation as to their rights. The training given is also so poor that they remain unskilled.

But I don't want to blame our government for its failure because it is already fed up with so many other problems. The issue of migrant workers cannot be the top priority.

Silo, 30, works at a textile store on Jl. Gajah Mada, West Jakarta. He lives nearby with friends:

Worker recruitment agencies have been acting like a Mafia. They extort workers very badly.

I experienced it once when I applied for a job aboard a foreign cruise ship. The agency forced me to pay Rp 4 million (US$470) and to wait for a maximum of four months for a job.

After six months of waiting, I lost hope. The agency failed to secure for me the job promised, despite the payment. I forced the agency owner to return my money and I got it. But many of my unfortunate colleagues lost their money and hope at that time.

I imagine that migrant workers, who apply as housemaids, would be far more vulnerable to extortion because they are less educated.

Ambar, 40, works for a private company in Central Jakarta. She lives in Bogor with her family:

I can't imagine the suffering of our migrant workers. They have been mistreated by their employers while trying to earn money.

The government should have protected them but in reality has failed to act toughly to curb irregularities by agencies and corrupt officers who extort money from workers upon their return home.

One of my neighbors works for an agency. I have no respect for her -- I know it's unreasonable and childish.

As a woman, she should have known the possible consequences faced by our migrant workers, but she did nothing to stop them.

She and the agency only think about money and how to manipulate workers by not providing them the information they need. She is one of the unscrupulous people who put migrant workers at risk overseas.

-- Leo Wahyudi S.