Threat of Mass Layoffs Looms, Labour Boss Urges Government Action

The threat of mass redundancies is currently looming over the manufacturing sector. The issue of expensive industrial gas is said to be the main culprit and has become a focus of meetings between the government and labour unions. The government has also prepared a cross-ministerial coordination mechanism to accelerate the handling of employment issues. “The meeting earlier was very effective because the KSPSI confederation I lead is the most severely affected. As many as 55,000 workers are already facing an imminent threat, and one company, PT Granitog, has already closed,” said Andi Gani Nena Wea, President of the All-Indonesia Workers’ Union Confederation (KSPSI), on Friday (26/6/2026). Coordination between ministries is a crucial factor so that every policy can be implemented immediately. Therefore, the establishment of a Layoff Task Force is expected to accelerate the resolution of various issues triggering the threat of employment termination. “Today, many journalists asked who the Chair of the Layoff Task Force is. The Chair of the Layoff Task Force is the Minister of State Secretary,” said Andi Gani. The appointment was the result of a joint agreement among labour organisation leaders. With this, communication and cross-ministerial decision-making are expected to be more effective. “Because we also asked for it, the labour leaders agreed so that cross-sectoral ministerial communication would be effective,” he stated. He hopes that decisions taken promptly can reduce the potential for a wave of layoffs in the near future. “Therefore, to fellow workers who are currently awaiting the results of this meeting, I assure you the government is on the side of both workers and employers, a win-win solution, and hopefully by Monday there will be a decision regarding industrial gas and the RKAB,” said Andi Gani.