Plantation workers demand better social welfare

Plantation workers demand better social welfare

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan

Some 25,000 workers of state-owned palm oil company PT
Perkebunan Nusantara II (PTPN II) went on strike on Tuesday to
demand a replacement of the company's board of directors, fair
pay and better job security.

Most of the demonstrators occupied the company's main office
in Tanjungmorawa, some 20 kilometers south of the city, while
several representatives staged a demonstration at the North
Sumatra provincial legislature building.

They said they would continue to occupy the main office and
stay off the job until State Minister of State Enterprises
Laksamana Sukardi replaced the company's management, which they
said was unable to save the company from a financial crisis it
was facing.

The workers, grouped in the PTPN II workers union, also
demanded the new management to pay off its debt to state-owned
insurance company PT Jamsostek for the insurance program the
workers are enrolled in and to comply with the minimum wage
standard for the province.

Indro Suhito, the chairman of the labor union for the company,
said the current board of directors needed to be replaced because
they were unable to cope with its financial difficulties.

"The company's finance director has confirmed the financial
problems, while Reni Aziz, the director of human resources, is in
police custody for the alleged unlawful sale of company land to
other parties," he said after holding a dialog with the
provincial legislature's leadership here on Tuesday.

Indro said that the workers had delivered a letter containing
their demands, which gained the support of the provincial
legislative council, to the state minister of state enterprises
on Aug. 9, but it had yet to hear a response.

"The workers have no motives behind their demand for the
management's replacement except to save the company from
bankruptcy. It is up to the central government to appoint people
who are capable of saving the company," he said.

Indro said workers no longer had confidence in the current
management since the company was buckling under the weight of a
huge bank debt totaling Rp 324.2 billion.

Teruna Sinulingga, the deputy chairman of the labor union,
blamed the strike on the management's ignorance of the poor labor
situation in the company.

"The workers went on strike because the management refused to
make hundreds of contract-based workers permanent and to comply
with the standard minimum wage for the province. A large amount
of workers are paid Rp 378,000 per month, while the monthly
minimum wage is set at Rp 464,000," he said.

Warsito Suhendra, the company's finance director, said at a
hearing with the provincial legislature's commission on
agriculture and plantations that the company was struggling with
the Rp 320 billion debt and a Rp 4.2 billion debt to PT
Jamsostek, and would be on the verge of collapse if no concrete
actions were taken to improve the company's performance.

Efendi Panjaitan, the director of operations, said the
management was trying to boost the company's production of palm
oil and tobacco to help solve the company's financial problems.

"We are aiming to raise palm oil production to 11,000 tons per
month from the previous 10,000 tons, and boost monthly tobacco
production to 270 bales, worth 3 million euro.

Provincial legislature deputy chairman Serta Ginting, who met
with the representatives, said the majority of legislators had
heard the workers' demands.

He said the commission would invite the company's management
to discuss the company's situation.