Over 12,500 workers lose jobs in Bekasi

Over 12,500 workers lose jobs in Bekasi

JAKARTA (JP): The Bekasi branch of the All-Indonesia Workers
Union Federation has helped arranged the dismissal of 12,586
workers between October 1997 and last month, an official said
over the weekend.

The branch's secretary, R. Abdullah, said that the
federation's role included mostly negotiations on severance pay
the fired workers were entitled to.

Throughout last year, the federation helped settle 123 labor
disputes in Bekasi, the highest it has handled ever, Abdullah
said.

In the past, the number of industrial disputes handled had
never exceeded 100 a year, he said.

"The current economic crisis has forced more and more
companies to close down," he said, reported Antara. (pan)