Parliamentary Member: Domestic Workers Protection Bill Safeguards Rights of Workers and Employers
Jakarta — A member of the Parliamentary Legislative Body (Baleg) from the Golkar Party and Deputy General Chair of the Golkar Women’s Union (PP KPPG), Karmila Sari, has reaffirmed her party’s commitment to protecting the rights of domestic workers (PRT) and employers through discussion of the proposed Domestic Workers Protection Bill (RUU PPRT).
Karmila stated that the regulation would not only establish protections for domestic workers but also provide clarity on the rights and obligations of employers to ensure professional and fair employment relationships.
“This bill does not only address the protection, rights, and obligations of domestic workers, but also regulates the rights and obligations of employers, including work agreement models, quality and skills of domestic workers,” Karmila said in a statement in Jakarta on Friday.
According to her, the regulation would also establish mechanisms for vocational education and training for prospective domestic workers. Such training programmes could be conducted by the central government, local governments, or domestic worker placement companies.
Additionally, the parliament has proposed that domestic workers receive social security coverage, including health insurance and employment security, ensuring they have protections equivalent to workers in other sectors.
Karmila explained that the RUU PPRT covers various crucial aspects, ranging from the rights and obligations of workers to mechanisms for legal protection and dispute resolution between domestic workers and employers.
She believes that discussions of this regulation must be conducted carefully with the involvement of various stakeholders, given that the bill has undergone a lengthy process.
“This bill has experienced fluctuations in discussion for more than two decades. Therefore, we want to ensure that its discussion is conducted comprehensively,” she said.
The Parliamentary Legislative Body has designated the Domestic Workers Protection Bill as a parliamentary initiative proposal in March 2026, with the decision later ratified in a plenary session on 12 March 2026.
Karmila stressed the urgency of the bill is strengthened by the fact that the majority of domestic workers in Indonesia are women. Of approximately 4.2 million domestic workers, around 84 per cent are women.
This situation makes domestic workers vulnerable to various forms of violence, exploitation, and unfair treatment in employment relationships.
Additionally, domestic work has traditionally been viewed merely as “helping work” within family relations, and thus has often not been recognised as a professional employment relationship requiring legal protection.
According to Karmila, the existence of this law is important to provide legal certainty for both domestic workers and employers.
She also views the regulation as part of a constitutional mandate guaranteeing every citizen’s right to fair treatment in employment relationships, as regulated in the 1945 Constitution.
Furthermore, the presence of domestic workers protection legislation is expected to strengthen protections for Indonesian migrant domestic workers employed abroad.
With such regulation in place, other countries employing Indonesian domestic workers are expected to adopt the same protection standards.
For context, domestic workers also make a significant contribution to the national economy. Indonesian central bank data recorded remittances from Indonesian migrant workers in 2024 reached approximately 15.7 billion US dollars, equivalent to 253 trillion rupiah.
However, this substantial economic contribution is considered insufficient when balanced against the inadequate legal protections currently afforded to domestic workers.