Sudharmono sees collusion between union chiefs and management
Sudharmono sees collusion between union chiefs and management
JAKARTA (JP): According to the government's chief ideologue
Sudharmono, industrial relations in Indonesia suffer from chronic
turbulence because of collusion between union leaders, government
representatives and management.
The tripartite boards are the channel through which workers
and management representatives are supposed to resolve their
differences. However, according to Sudharmono, these boards have
been turned into a forum where labor leaders and government
representatives negotiate with management to satisfy their own
personal interests.
He stated that this type of selling out is almost always to
the detriment of labor, but can often hurt management and labor
as well.
"Don't expect industrial harmony as long as collusion
continues to occur," said Sudharmono, the former vice president
who has been appointed as a presidential advisor on matters
relating to the state ideology Pancasila.
The seminar yesterday sought ways of promoting Pancasila in
Industrial Relations, a concept developed in 1974 but whose
implementation was never clear.
Sudharmono, known for speaking his mind with no holds barred,
said it is through the tripartite boards that management pay off
government officials and even union representatives in order to
vote in their favor.
These pay-off's make up for what entrepreneurs often call
invisible costs which they have to budget, often at the cost of
suppressing workers' salaries, he said.
The boards are set up as a forum for negotiations between
workers and management. It has been widely reported in the past
that the workers' representatives were often picked by management
rather than selected by their colleagues.
Sudharmono said the Pancasila Industrial Relations was
developed using Indonesian cultural values and experiences. Its
salient points include the need to resolve differences in a
"familial spirit" the use of negotiations, greater management
transparency, and partnership between employers and workers.
Last resort
The concept falls short of barring industrial strikes but
stressed that this weapon of the workers should only be used as a
last resort in the event that negotiations break down.
Sudharmono's criticisms of the tripartite boards was another
slap in the face of the All Indonesian Workers Union (SPSI),
which in the past has been criticized as being ineffective in
fighting for the interests of its members.
SPSI is the only union recognized by the government to
represent workers in negotiations with management.
Former SPSI chairman Agus Sudono said that many SPSI
executives have not grasped the Pancasila industrial relations
concept.
SPSI Deputy Secretary General Wilhelmus Bokha told The Jakarta
Post that in essence the Pancasila industrial relations concept
is not dissimilar to those applied in other countries.
Bokha said that the most important thing was implementation
and on this front, government and management representatives have
abused the concept for their own personal gain.
"Many government officials and employers have intimidated
workers who were planning to strike by saying that such an action
runs counter to Pancasila," he said.
He also questioned whether the government and employers were
truly ready to implement the concept. "The concept assumes
democratic leadership and political openness."
Apindo Secretary General Rienaldo Thamrin however blamed the
lack of professionalism of workers representatives in the
tripartite boards.
"If SPSI is independent and professional, it will go along way
in improving its image in the eyes of workers," he said.(rms)