Working mothers wary of day care centers

According to data from the Jakarta branch of the Central Statistics Agency, the number of working women in Jakarta is 1,041,366, or about 31.5 percent of the 3,379,202 working people. However, many offices do not provide day care centers or special rooms for breast-feeding mothers. The Jakarta Post's Leony Aurora has been looking into this issue. This is the second of four articles.

When Selvy Nurida got pregnant two years ago, the number one item on her to-do list was finding a proper day care center for her new baby.

"My friends at the office were shocked. 'How can you put your baby in day care?' they asked me," said the 35-year-old mother recently.

"It (such a center) sounded to them like an orphanage," she said with a big smile.

Child care centers, apparently, are not popular among working women with babies in the capital. The more common practice is to hire babysitters, despite stories told of some of them being unprofessional, and negligent, as well as the horrid possibility of kidnapping.

"I can't trust someone to be alone with my boy all day," said Selvy.

For its supporters, day care offers several obvious advantages. "Toddlers learn to make friends and share with others," said Lusia Indah Kurniawan, operational manager of KeenKids day care at Park Royale apartments on Jl. Gatot Subroto, Central Jakarta.

Moreover, said Titik Alwachi of Sylva day care center in the Manggala Wanabakti building, Central Jakarta, the facility allows mothers to continue breast-feeding when they return to work after three month's maternity leave.

Children also learn discipline, said Farida, whose daughter goes to Mitra day care in the Bulog II building in Kuningan, South Jakarta, near the Ministry of Industry and Trade where she works.

The typical day of a child in a day care center starts with morning activities, including drawing, singing, or outdoor games.

After lunch, the children take their nap together, snuggling up in their comfortable bunk beds. In the afternoon, they have a snack, bath and play some more while waiting for their parents to pick them up.

"They learn to sleep on time, they don't need a lullaby and they can eat by themselves," said Farida.

Harry Setiarto of Mitra, which was established in 1986, said that many working mothers would like to put their kids in day care centers but often stumbled upon location.

"A day care center should be set up near or in office complexes," he said.

Lusia could not agree more. "However, many office buildings in Jakarta were not designed to have such centers," she said.

KeenKids was opened in 1996 at Wisma Dharmala in Sudirman, Central Jakarta, but had to move three years ago due to lack of space and tenants complaining about the "cooking smell".

To encourage offices to provide on- or near-site child care centers, the United States has created a tax credit for employers. The law, passed in 2001, stipulates that a 25 percent tax credit is available for employer expenses related to child care activities.

There is currently no such policy to groom on-site day care centers in Indonesia. Law No. 13/2003 on manpower stipulates that employers should give the opportunity for employees to breast- feed their babies during work hours, but there is no standard on required facilities.

"Thanks to the day care center, I can be more focused on my work to know that she is well-cared for and that if anything happens, I can easily come by," said Farida.

How expensive is a day care center exactly? Is it true that it's cheaper to hire a babysitter?

Babysitters' salaries range between Rp 450,000 (US$49.31) and Rp 1 million a month. Employers are expected to provide a uniform, a room, three meals a day, and an annual bonus.

KeenKids day care center at Park Royale apartments on Jl. Gatot Subroto, Central Jakarta, 5717502.

Cost: Rp 1.1 million per month for babies between three and 18 months

Rp 1.35 million per month for toddlers between 18 months and five years.

Time: 7:45 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Facilities: three meals, doctor's visit once in two weeks, dentist's visit once in six months.

Mitra day care center at Bulog II building in Kuningan, South Jakarta, 5204277.

Cost: Rp 20,000 a day or Rp 400,000 a month for Indonesians

Rp 25,000 a day for foreigners

Time: 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Facilities: one meal, one snack

Sylva day care center at Manggala Wanabakti complex, on Jl. Gatot Subroto, Central Jakarta, 5720188.

Cost: Rp 25,000 a day

Time: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Facilities: one meal, two snacks, doctor's visit once a week.