SPSI needs strong leadership: Soeharto
SPSI needs strong leadership: Soeharto
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto said yesterday that the All Indonesian Workers Union (SPSI) should be a strong and professional organization because Indonesia is entering the era of economic liberalization.
"For that purpose," he said, "SPSI must be led by leaders who have their grassroots among workers."
Soeharto, opening the congress of the government-backed labor union at the State Palace, said that SPSI leaders must be able to manage the union professionally and channel the workers' aspirations properly.
The congress will hold other sessions at the Caringin weekend resort in West Java, and last until Nov. 19.
Attending the opening ceremony were Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief, SPSI Chairman Imam Sudarwo and approximately 250 participants from throughout Indonesia.
Soeharto said Indonesia should be ready to meet challenges resulting from international economic openness and free trade.
"We should work hard to improve efficiency and human resources effectivity in order to win competition," he said.
He said to face future challenges Indonesia should improve the quality of its workers and provide them with expertise in all fields.
Soeharto also said that SPSI should become a professional and strong labor union and this can only be achieved if it wins the workers' support and trust.
SPSI will be able to handle all workers' problems if it improves its professionalism, Soeharto said.
The President said that SPSI should also work hard to strengthen its weak position in its relations with the government and employers.
Soeharto said that due to the fact that there are now so many business sectors, SPSI should be geared to become a federation, comprising labor units from each sector.
"This step will make it more professional," he said.
Soeharto said that, under the Indonesian system of industrial relations, labor strikes and factory closures are no longer effective in the efforts to find a solution to labor disputes.
"Both labor and the business management should realize their own roles and responsibility and should respect one another as partners," he said.
"All differences of opinion in bipartite, or tripartite, bargainings can be solved peacefully, provided the bargaining is conducted in openness and democratically," said the President.
Latief said that the congress is expected to be able to improve the labor union's image.
"The labor organization should intensify its training programs, strengthen its bargaining position and improve workers' awareness of the Pancasila industrial relations concept," he said.
According to the minister, the government will continue to pay attention to the improvement of workers' welfare.
"As a concrete step, the government has raised the daily minimum wage by 48 percent during the last 18 months and provides annual Christmas and Idul Fitri holiday bonuses and social security insurance for workers.
He warned the participants that labor problems in the future will be more complex due the rapid growth of the work force.
"The number of those in the work force, by the end of the second stage of the 25-year development, in 2018, will increase from the present 70 million, to 120 million.
This means that we will need a strong and professional labor union," he said. (rms)
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