New team established to enforce wage hikes
New team established to enforce wage hikes
JAKARTA (JP): The government has formed an integrated team to enforce the new minimum wage regulations in Jakarta and surrounding areas, a senior official said.
"The team, whose members are from the Ministries of Manpower and Industry, the Attorney General's Office and the Jakarta Military Command, was formed to ensure that all employers in the region comply with the new minimum wage regulations," Director General for Industrial Relations and Labor Standards, Suwarto, told The Jakarta Post yesterday.
The government has issued regulations on the increase, by five percent to 30 percent, in minimum wages, that took into effect as of April 1, 1995. The minimum wages in Jakarta and West Java are set at Rp 4,600 (US$2.08) per day, a rise of 21 percent from Rp 3,800 (US$1.72) in the past.
The director general said the region, a home to approximately 65,000 industries, is quite prone to industrial strikes sparked by labor disputes between management and workers.
"The team will especially monitor the areas of Tangerang, Bogor, East Jakarta, North Jakarta and Bekasi," he said, citing that most labor unrests in the past occurred in labor-intensive companies and those relocated to Indonesia from Korea, Japan and Taiwan.
A spate of industrial strikes occurred in Jakarta and its surrounding areas last year when many employers ignored the government's ruling that they raise the daily minimum wages from Rp 2,600 to Rp 3,800. Thirty seven companies, violating the regulations, were brought to court and punished with 15-day imprisonment and fines ranging from Rp 75,000 to Rp 750,000.
Suwarto said the government would closely monitor the enforcement of the minimum wage regulations and would take stern actions against companies found guilty of breaching the regulations.
"Besides punishments and administrative sanctions, the government will also blacklist them and announce them and their products to the public," he said.
He called on workers to report to his office any violations, in their work place, to help the government ensure enforcement of the minimum wage regulations.
"My office is open 24 hours a day for workers complaints," Suwarto said.
He reiterated that companies, especially labor-intensive firms, should pay workers above the levels stipulated in the daily minimum wage regulations to stimulate workers into improving their productivity and industrial relations.
Suwarto acknowledged that the daily minimum wage levels were necessary because many companies were still paying their workers below those set by the government.
"It is saddening that many big companies are still paying their workers below the daily minimum wages set by the government," he said. "What was set by the government in the regulations is the minimum levels employers should comply with." (rms)