West Java workers want more pay

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

Thousands of West Java factory workers, grouped under the National Workers Union (SPN), staged a five hour protest on Wednesday outside the West Java governor's office, demanding that the governor raise the minimum wage in the province.

The protesters damaged the gate of the governor's office but their attempts to occupy the office were thwarted by a police cordon of hundreds of police personnel.

After a scuffle with police personnel, several representatives of the workers were allowed to talk with government officials and councillors in the West Java Provincial Legislative Council building, which is next to the governor's office.

In the meeting, the workers demanded that West Java Governor Danny Setiawan set a single minimum wage that applies in all cities in West Java. They urged the government to set a minimum wage at least Rp 600,000 a month in every city in the province.

They also said that there was currently a discrepancy among cities in the province in term of the minimum wage.

For 2005, the minimum wage in Ciamis and Banjar regencies is set at Rp 408,500, the lowest minimum wage in the province. In stark contrast, the highest is in Bekasi, where a worker will get minimum wage of Rp 710,000 a month next year.

"We demand that there be no great discrepancy between one city and another, because the cost of living among cities in West Java is quite similar," said Titin, a factory worker in Bandung municipality.

In the meeting, councillor Imas Masitoh promised workers that the provincial council would press the provincial government to revoke a gubernatorial decree that set the minimum wage for 2005 and that the governor should grant a higher minimum wage for workers.

Meanwhile, the head of the manpower office at the provincial administration, Wahyumijaya, said in the meeting that the decree was final.