Teenager must work for family
Teenager must work for family
OSLO, Norway (JP): It is 5:30 a.m. When most children her age
are getting ready for school, 14-year-old Ida Narsidah leaves for
work at a cookie factory in Tangerang, West Java.
She takes the bus and then walks for about 30 minutes to her
workplace. Her hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a lunch break
from 11:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Her daily wage is Rp 5,000 a day.
"That's not enough. I need more money to support my family,"
she said.
She has lived with her grandparents since she was a baby as
her parents were too poor to raise her. Her father's work is
erratic -- he is a casual laborer -- and her mother farms.
Her grandfather is a becak (pedicab) driver and her
grandmother is a housewife.
Narsidah was only 11 years old when she left school and
started to work.
"I wanted to make money because I pitied my grandfather. He is
too old to be a becak driver. Besides, I decided to leave school
because I was embarrassed at being late in paying the school
fee," she said.
"So, I told my grandfather, let me work and be the one who
makes money. He agreed."
She packages the cookies, handling about 300 packs a day. In
her first months at work, she earned Rp 5,000 a week, before
receiving a raise to Rp 7,000. Her weekly wage now is Rp 30,000.
Her wage is net, and she does not receive allowances for
transportation, meals or other benefits. For lunch, she eats rice
with tempeh soybean cakes, which she buys at a foodstall in the
factory compound for Rp 500.
Of the 600 people working in the factory, about 100 are
children aged 12 to 15 years old, according to Narsidah.
Every weekend, she returns to her parents' home and gives some
money to her parents to care for her three siblings. Her earnings
are putting the eldest of the children through school.
She does not regret dropping out of school, but hopes one day
to continue her studies.
"I want to study after work. But I have to work, because who
will feed us if I stop working?"
She said she understood the importance of education "to get
diploma", which she believed it was crucial to landing a job.
"I am ashamed I don't even have an elementary school diploma.
When I applied for the job in the cookie factory, I used my
aunt's diploma.
"If I can continue my study, I can get a diploma and hopefully
get a better job."
She realizes her dream job may be outside her grasp.
"I want to be a flight attendant. I would love to fly and
serve people," she said. "But how can I be one? I am only a
factory worker." (sim)
OSLO, Norway (JP): It is 5:30 a.m. When most children her age
are getting ready for school, 14-year-old Ida Narsidah leaves for
work at a cookie factory in Tangerang, West Java.
She takes the bus and then walks for about 30 minutes to her
workplace. Her hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a lunch break
from 11:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Her daily wage is Rp 5,000 a day.
"That's not enough. I need more money to support my family,"
she said.
She has lived with her grandparents since she was a baby as
her parents were too poor to raise her. Her father's work is
erratic -- he is a casual laborer -- and her mother farms.
Her grandfather is a becak (pedicab) driver and her
grandmother is a housewife.
Narsidah was only 11 years old when she left school and
started to work.
"I wanted to make money because I pitied my grandfather. He is
too old to be a becak driver. Besides, I decided to leave school
because I was embarrassed at being late in paying the school
fee," she said.
"So, I told my grandfather, let me work and be the one who
makes money. He agreed."
She packages the cookies, handling about 300 packs a day. In
her first months at work, she earned Rp 5,000 a week, before
receiving a raise to Rp 7,000. Her weekly wage now is Rp 30,000.
Her wage is net, and she does not receive allowances for
transportation, meals or other benefits. For lunch, she eats rice
with tempeh soybean cakes, which she buys at a foodstall in the
factory compound for Rp 500.
Of the 600 people working in the factory, about 100 are
children aged 12 to 15 years old, according to Narsidah.
Every weekend, she returns to her parents' home and gives some
money to her parents to care for her three siblings. Her earnings
are putting the eldest of the children through school.
She does not regret dropping out of school, but hopes one day
to continue her studies.
"I want to study after work. But I have to work, because who
will feed us if I stop working?"
She said she understood the importance of education "to get
diploma", which she believed it was crucial to landing a job.
"I am ashamed I don't even have an elementary school diploma.
When I applied for the job in the cookie factory, I used my
aunt's diploma.
"If I can continue my study, I can get a diploma and hopefully
get a better job."
She realizes her dream job may be outside her grasp.
"I want to be a flight attendant. I would love to fly and
serve people," she said. "But how can I be one? I am only a
factory worker." (sim)