Soeharto asks Latief to socialize new labor law

Soeharto asks Latief to socialize new labor law

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto ordered Minister of Manpower
Abdul Latief yesterday to take steps to familiarize the public
with the newly endorsed manpower bill before it goes into effect
next year.

Soeharto also asked Latief to prepare a draft of related
government regulations which would be needed to implement the
bill.

"The President is happy that the bill was eventually adopted
after a democratic and transparent process," Latief told
reporters after meeting with Soeharto at Merdeka Palace.

Latief said the government would issue eight government
regulations, including two on the establishment of a national
council and a national productivity council.

The other six regulations will cover workers' rights to set up
trade unions and to go on strike, and will include a regulation
on layoffs.

The House approved the bill on Thursday after weeks of
intensive deliberations, under the pressure of limited time and
constant criticism that the bill was actually meant to reduce
workers' rights.

Critics condemned the government, for instance, because
according to the original draft of the government-sponsored bill,
workers should not be paid when they go on strike.

The government bowed to pressure and agreed to introduce
changes in the bill. The document now says workers are allowed to
strike if their basic rights are not met, without losing their
wages, and as long as the strikes are not held on streets.

The document will abolish 11 ordinances and laws on labor
affairs if it is enacted by the President. It is expected to go
into effect on Oct. 1, 1998; there has been no explanation as to
why the bill will go into effect on that date.

Previous experience has apparently prompted the government to
give more time for people to become familiar with the law.

In 1992, the government was forced to postpone for a year the
enforcement of the widely criticized traffic law after widespread
public protest. Analysts had then blamed the government for not
giving enough time for the public to become accustomed to the
law.

Latief said yesterday that the government would also establish
a national manpower planning policy to anticipate an oversupply
of labor.

"We are facing an oversupply of labor ... and 74 percent of
the labor force are primary school graduates," Latief added.

He disclosed the government plan to adopt a nontariff barrier
to discourage the growing number of foreign workers here.

About 70,000 expatriates are currently working in Indonesia
with a total income of between US$2.5 billion and $3 billion.

"When our goods enter the Australian market, they try to
complicate entry procedures by imposing barriers," he said,
citing as an example. He added that Indonesia would do the same,
but in a fair way.

"We will do it openly to protect our workers," Latief said.

The government issued a decree early this year requiring
expatriates working in Indonesia to pay US$100 a month during the
period of their work contracts to finance vocational training
programs for local workers. It also regulates the
"Indonesianization", or phasing in, of Indonesian workers to
positions at companies currently held by expatriates.

"The salaries of our workers are much lower than those of
expatriates," Latief said.

Protest

Separately yesterday, a group of activists of three non-
governmental organizations held a demonstration expressing their
lack of confidence in the House of Representatives for endorsing
the manpower bill.

Some 20 activists accused the House of neglecting public
demand for a law that would protect workers' basic rights. They
also accused the legislative body of cowardice in that it was
unable to correct weaknesses of the bill.

The head of labor division at the Foundation of the Indonesian
Legal Aid Institute, Teten Masduki, who joined the demonstration,
said that despite legislators' claims to the contrary, the
endorsed bill was not much different from the original document.

"The only changes were on language and on some articles that
were added. The additional articles are not essential by nature.
For instance, there's an article on the establishment of workers'
cooperatives," he said.

The protesters called themselves the Commission on Labor Law
Reform, the Consortium of Defenders of Migrant Workers and the
Women's Group for Labor Justice. (prb/05)