Sunter workers fired for lodging complaint
Sunter workers fired for lodging complaint
JAKARTA (JP): Thirty four workers of PT Nusantara Teknik Dimensi Sentosa, a heavy equipment factory in Sunter, North Jakarta, claimed yesterday they were fired for filing a complaint with the city council on Tuesday.
The workers went to the city council again yesterday to report the case.
R. Tobing, the leader of the group, said that a company executive told the workers they were all fired.
"When we arrived at the factory to work this morning the gate was locked and we were told that we were no longer employees of the company," R. Tobing said.
He said the company fired the employees because of their complaints to the City Council's commission E, which oversees people's welfare.
On Tuesday about 30 of the company's workers filed a complaint with the city council over the Idul Fitri bonus.
The employees contend that the company has not yet fulfilled its obligation to give them their due Idul Fitri bonuses and salaries. They also complained about the management firing eight workers without clear reasons.
The salaries for the company's 35 workers range from Rp 35,000 to Rp 90,000 per week.
The company, according to Nasmi, one of the fired workers, had promised to give them Idul Fitri bonuses and their weekly salaries on Feb. 28 but refused to pay on that date. Because the management had never explained their actions, the workers went on strike on March 13 .
The management denies having fired all of its workers.
"It is not true and they were not fired," Bambang Supriyono, a staff member of the management, told reporters yesterday.
The company needs its employees, Bambang said, adding that it would be impossible to fire them at the moment.
Bambang explained that the company suffered financial losses last year and that it could not afford to give adequate Idul Fitri bonuses.
"We could only afford to give Rp 15,000 to Rp 20,000 to each worker as bonuses," he said, admitting that the bonus was far less than last year's when each employee received Rp 300,000.
It seems, he reasoned, that the workers cannot accept this fact.
On Tuesday it was reported that no workers were on the job. "I don't care if the company fires me," said Sutrisno, a company employee of three years. (yns)