The Irony of Non-Civil Servant Lecturers: Salaries Below Minimum Wage, Yet Insane Workloads

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The wages of non-civil servant lecturers in Indonesia have come under scrutiny during a material examination hearing of Law Number 14 of 2005 on Teachers and Lecturers at the Constitutional Court (MK) on Tuesday (5/5/2026). Various parties have highlighted that the welfare conditions of lecturers remain far from adequate, with the majority of their incomes below the regional minimum wage (UMR), despite the very high workloads they bear. Chairman of the All-Indonesia Lecturers Communication Forum (FKDSI), Andi Herenal Daeng Toto, explained that this situation has persisted for a long time. In fact, findings in several regions reveal stark wage disparities. “In East Java, there are lecturers receiving a salary of Rp304,000 per month with an UMR of Rp3,320,000 per month,” he said. FKDSI also noted that 76.7 percent of its members receive incomes below the regional minimum wage in their respective areas. This indicates that the majority of non-civil servant lecturers remain economically vulnerable. They are calling for stronger legal certainty. “A constitutional interpretation is needed that affirms lecturers’ incomes must at least meet objective and measurable minimum standards such as the regional minimum wage,” he stated. “If relying solely on the base salary of Rp3,390,500, that amount is below the city minimum wage (UMK) in Depok applicable for 2025-2026,” he added. He also spotlighted the work system that depends on campus policies. “The components of lecturers’ income at UI are highly variable and based on performance or incentives, not on a fixed guarantee of a minimum decent living standard,” he said. Furthermore, he assessed that there is an imbalance in protection for educators within the campus environment.