Teachers need to organize

Teachers need to organize

As the teachers bill is currently being debated by the House
of Representatives (DPR), the topic of teachers' salaries has
again hit the headlines. Given that education is the key to
socioeconomic development, and that the salaries paid to teachers
have a huge bearing on the quality of education, it is obviously
important to Indonesia that teachers here are paid properly.

Indonesian teachers are relying heavily on the proposed
legislation to provide them with decent salaries. While
legislation is important for setting minimum standards, it might
be better for teachers -- from elementary school up to university
-- to seek pay increases through Collective Labor Agreements
(CLAs). Chapter 11 of the Manpower Law (No.13/2003) permits CLAs
for private sector employees. The Teachers Bill should
specifically permit teachers who are employed as civil servants
to also be able to bargain collectively.

Bargaining collectively would entail teachers unions
negotiating directly with the employers to determine the
most appropriate salaries. This model would be much more flexible
than legislating for pay rates, as agreements can be amended
quickly and tailored to specific regions and/or employers.

Unfortunately, Indonesian teachers -- especially university
lecturers -- seem to have a cultural aversion to unions and
collective bargaining. They see unions as the domain of manual
laborers. Perhaps Indonesian teachers can learn from the many other
countries where teachers from all levels and sectors have
organized so as to be able to bargain more effectively and gain
the salaries they deserve.

LUKE LAZARUS ARNOLD, Jakarta