Workers take to the streets to demand higher basic wage

Workers take to the streets to demand higher basic wage

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

As the year 2005 draws to a close, thousands of factory workers
on Java hit the streets on Wednesday to demand that regional
governments raise the minimum wage to enable workers to enjoy a
decent standard of living.

The protest went peacefully with exception of the city of
Bandung, West Java, where over 1,000 workers trampled the main
gate of the West Java Governor's office, Antara reported.

The protests were seen as necessary to step up pressure on the
government, which has sided with employers at the expense of
workers, said Joko Haryono, a protest leader in Serang, Banten.

The protesters asked the Banten provincial government to raise
worker's living standards by raising the minimum wage for next
year.

The protesters also demanded that employers pay attention to
their plight. The protesters argued, by raising the worker's
minimum wage, the employers would only spend a small portion of
their overhead costs on wages, which represent only between 5
percent and 10 percent of total production costs, said Joko.

The workers demanded that the government raise the Banten
provincial minimum wage to Rp 789,460, or a Rp 204,460 increase
from the current minimum wage. Stepping up pressure for the
government to raise provincial minimum wage is seen as crucial as
it sets the benchmark for the regency and city minimum wage in
Banten province.

Responding to the demand, speaker of Banten Provincial
Legislative Council Ady Surya Dharma said the matter would be
left to the wage council consisting of government officials, and
representatives of employers and labor unions.

A similar demand was also aired in Surabaya on the same day.
In the protest, hundreds of factory workers and students asserted
that the wage hike was essential as people's purchasing power had
been weakened due to the fuel price hike on Oct. 1. They said the
government had to compensate for the fuel price hike by raising
the minimum wage.

However, the East Java wage council is still discussing the
percentage increase in the minimum wage and the outcome will be
announced soon.

Meanwhile, workers in West Java knocked down the main gate of
the governor's office. The protesters demanded that Governor
Danny Setiawan reject the proposed minimum wage for next year
recommended by 12 regencies and cities across the province.

They said the recommendations had ignored the proposal of
labor unions. The Bandung local government, for example, had set
the minimum wage next year at Rp 710,000 far below the minimum
wage proposed by workers at Rp 780,000.

The governor has yet to announce the provincial minimum wage,
pending recommendations by the remaining 13 regencies and cities
across the province. The minimum wage set by the governor will
set the benchmark for the minimum wage in the regencies and
cities in West Java.