Reasons Why the Gerakan Buruh Bersama Rakyat Alliance Will Not Join May Day at Monas
Several labour unions have refused to join the May Day celebration at the National Monument in Jakarta, organised by the All-Indonesian Labour Confederation (KSPSI). Those refusing are part of an alliance called Gerakan Buruh Bersama Rakyat (Gebrak).
The alliance has decided to hold a demonstration to commemorate Labour Day in front of the House of Representatives (DPR) building in Jakarta on Friday, 1 May 2026. Chairman of the Indonesian Labour Struggle Federation, Herman Abdulrohman, stated that the current conditions for workers in Indonesia are still far from decent.
“So, it is not yet appropriate for us as workers to celebrate with festivities amid wages that are not yet sufficient to meet living needs and family requirements,” he said when contacted on Thursday, 30 April 2026.
The statement alludes to the May Day celebration organised by KSPSI at Monas with President Prabowo Subianto. Herman said that the closeness of labour unions with the head of state in celebrating May Day does not guarantee certainty of welfare for workers.
According to him, this often happens in various previous events. For example, when several labour elites approached the head of government, the state still enacted the Job Creation Law that burdens workers.
“So, being close to the president does not necessarily bring workers closer to improving their fate,” said Herman, representing the Gebrak Alliance.
General Chairman of the Confederation of the Congress of Indonesian Labour Alliances (Kasbi), Sunarno, said that the May Day celebration at Monas with the president is fraught with power co-optation. He highlighted the remilitarisation in the Prabowo Subianto regime.
According to him, the military’s role is now increasingly strengthening, seizing civilian domains such as in the implementation of the free nutritious meal project, national strategic projects, and various authoritarian government programmes. “Even in responding to criticism and differing public opinions (from the government), violence and criminalisation are often used,” he said on Thursday, 30 April 2026.
He stated the need for an independent and self-reliant movement to escort various demands in this year’s May Day action. He is concerned that the closeness of labour union groups with the president will only harm workers as a whole.
Therefore, Sunarno said there needs to be awareness among the working class to dare to reject subjugation by power. Workers, he said, must dare to criticise oppressive policies and prioritise the struggle for workers’ welfare.
“May Day is not just a national holiday, but a moment of reflection on the commitment to equality, social justice, and human dignity in the workplace,” said Sunarno.
In a separate opportunity, KSPSI claimed that President Prabowo Subianto’s presence at the 2026 May Day celebration in the Monas area will not impact the dimming of labour integrity. KSPSI President Andi Gani Nena Wea stated that he has been offered cabinet positions by the government three times.
However, those offers were always rejected as a form of commitment by the labour union to maintain the functioning of checks and balances in the government. “I am close to power, but I am also the one who sued the Omnibus Law,” said Andi in a press conference for the 2026 May Day Celebration in the Menteng area on Wednesday, 29 April 2026.
Andi reminded that the relationship between workers and the government cannot always be in a confrontational position. According to him, the government and workers must synergise to create a conducive situation.
“But, we prove that when there are problems with workers’ welfare, we are the ones who sue, we are the ones who fight. So, our labour idealism is never limited,” he said.