Observers say high-rise window cleaners must have BPJS Ketenagakerjaan and PPE
Jakarta, Kompas.com - The job of cleaning high-rise windows remains one of the professions with high occupational risk in urban areas.
Behind the clean, gleaming façades of office buildings, workers daily rely on safety ropes tens of storeys above the ground.
Labor market observer Timboel Siregar regards the trade as not something to be treated as a routine job because of the high risk of accidents.
Timboel says all workers, including freelancers, still have the right to labour protection as set out in several employment regulations.
‘This job is high risk. So there must be workers’ compensation for accidents, death benefit, and safe working conditions,’ he told Kompas.com via WhatsApp on Wednesday, 20 May 2026.
Companies or employers must ensure that workers deployed have social protection and safe work equipment.
He said high-rise window cleaners must work with full safety gear because the job relies on body balance, precision, and technical ability at height.
Timboel noted that companies are also required to provide PPE and safety equipment, not to burden workers with the full cost.
‘Workers should not buy all their own protective equipment. That is the company’s responsibility because the job is high risk,’ he said.
He assessed that government oversight, especially by labour inspectors, still needs strengthening. After all, work in high-risk sectors cannot rely on the bravery of workers alone.
In addition to social protection, Timboel highlighted the importance of certification and technical ability for rope-access workers.
According to him, workers who descend to clean high-rise buildings must have experience and specialised skills to reduce accident risk.
He added that high-rise buildings using rope-access cleaners should also have clear SOPs regarding the use of rope-access labour.
The government, he said, must ensure that every deployed worker is competent and protected.
When Kompas.com visited the BPH Migas Building, Tendean, South Jakarta, on Wednesday, 20 May 2026, several high-rise window cleaners were seen preparing to use safety equipment before starting work.
They wore safety helmets, full-body harnesses or PPE, gloves, and non-slip boots.
On the harness attached to the body, several devices were fitted, including a descender, ascender, mobile fall arrester, carabiner, and kernmantle rope used to regulate movement up and down the building.
During work, they rely on the rope system connected to the body to move along the building while cleaning the glass.
With the aid of rope-control devices and metal anchors, workers maintain body balance amid gusts of wind and uneven building surfaces.
The workers interviewed by Kompas.com were freelance workers under PT Moramon, a company involved in general contracting, supplier and trading, construction, interior design, and building maintenance.
One worker, Fajar Maulana, said he was drawn to the profession because he enjoys the challenge.
‘At first I was afraid, because humans are bound to feel fear when learning. But over time you get used to it and become braver, especially after knowing the SOP and the equipment,’ said Fajar at the BPH Migas Building.