Rp 1.86b lawsuit against former boss

JAKARTA (JP): Seventeen reporters filed a Rp 1.86 billion (US$209,700) lawsuit with the Central Jakarta District Court on Thursday against chief editor Robinson Pangaribuan of Moneter Indonesia business daily for firing them without severance pay and without paying their April and May salaries.

Robinson, the plaintiffs said, was also the owner of PT Grafika Medialoka Press, which publishes the daily.

"We had protested the firm's failure to pay us our April and May salaries. But the management refused to engage in a discussion with us," Haryono, one of the plaintiffs, said.

"They only promised via internal memorandums to pay our salaries, which to date has not been fulfilled. To worsen things, the management shocked us by issuing a letter stating that 17 reporters would be laid off, as of May this year.

"We tried to negotiate with Robinson via the Jakarta office of the Legal Aid Institute (LBH) and the Independent Journalists Association (AJI). He did not seem to be willing to pay our salaries."

Robinson could not be reached for comment on Thursday. (ylt)