Women’s Story in A Cup of Tea

Kompas/Yuniadhi Agung

Tea is prepared for the sultan at Yogyakarta Palace on Saturday. The Patehan ritual, as the ceremony is known, has become a tourist attraction for palace visitors.

Every cup of tea tells a story; about women who wake up before sunrise, about those who spend their days working in the dust of bulk tea, about reality, tears and sacrifice.

In the early hours before sunrise in early July, female tea pickers on the western slope of Mount Slamet, Central Java, were leaving their homes. Dressed in thick clothes, they were carrying empty bamboo baskets to hold tea shoots.

Before the townspeople woke up from their dreams and got out of bed, the women had already braved the cold air. After a while, they sank into the expanse of the Kaligua Tea Estate, Paguyangan district, Brebes regency, Central Java.

They chose and sorted the best leaves, shoot by shoot. Then, little by little all, the sprouts were put into the baskets fastened to their backs. After the baskets were full, the tea shoots were gathered to be taken to the scales.

The Kaligua Estate has 167 tea pickers, all of them women. Their average age is over 40.

A foreman of Kaligua Estate pickers, Carum, 51, said picker-women had a very vital role in producing quality shoots. Through their skilled and string hands, the best tea shoots are obtained. In tea business, the term is fine picking, which singles out top three shoots.

Meanwhile, the picking method by means of scissors or machines for big volumes will not produce fine shoots, but rather only medium ones. Medium picking means that the tea shoots cut off are not only the top three but also several shoots below, including tea stalks.

Kompas/Yuniadhi Agung

A royal tea procession takes places at the Yogyakarta Palace on Saturday. The Patehan ritual, as it is known, has become a tourist attraction for palace visitors.

Factory labor

Women also have a vital role in the tea industry’s downstream operation. In fragrant tea factories in Tegal regency, for instance, the majority of workers are women.

The packaging division of one of the fragrant tea factories comprises 100 percent women. They work in groups on a contract basis. This means that their wages depend on the number of packs wrapped up. On average, a group produces 17 packs.

After dawn, the women already arrive at the factory although the working hours start at 05.30 a.m. In the afternoon, they return home. Those who work overtime go home at night.

They work in a room about the size of two badminton fields. Each group is usually composed of six people, sitting on the floor or small stools around bulk fragrant tea.

Some are packing bulk tea in containers. Others are putting filled containers into plastic bags. They are all working manually.

Some are packing bulk tea in containers. Others are putting filled containers into plastic bags. They are all working manually.

The packaging activity causes the dust or particles of bulk tea to be carried in the air and fill the room.

Bella, 24, a resident of Balamoa village, Pangkah district, Tegal regency, is one of the female workers in the packaging division. She has worked there for only three years.

After finishing high school, Bella wanted to go to university. But her family’s financial condition forced her to bury her dreams. Her father died in 2016, while her mother is ailing and is unable to work.

In fact, Bella has two younger siblings now attending school, aged 11 and 6 respectively. Finally, she decided to take over the responsibility as breadwinner. The family’s daily needs and the school expenses of both siblings are fully borne by her.

“Since the death of my father, I’ve had to support the family. This is my responsibility as the oldest child in the family,” she said.

Every month, Bella earns around Rp 1.7 million (US$124.29), which is not enough to meet her family’s needs and her siblings’ schooling costs. Therefore, Bella has had to find a side job.

“In the evening, I teach primary school students near my house. It’s quite fair, I can spend the money to cover my siblings’ expenses.” She added.

Siti, 51, another packaging worker, has worked at the fragrant tea factory longer. She also works in the same division. For years, the resident of Adiwerna village, Adiwerna district, Tegal regency, was working to back her husband’s income.

However, over the last five years, Siti has had to fully support the family. In, her husband had to quit his job after suffering a stroke.

However, over the last five years, Siti has had to fully support the family. In, her husband had to quit his job after suffering a stroke.

For extra income, Siti works overtime. She also does sewing work. After returning home from the factory, in the afternoon or evening, she sews clothing as ordered by customers.

“My two children attended school until they graduated from senior high school thanks to the income from tea. My husband and I cherish the hope that our children can pursue a higher education and enjoy a better life than ours,” Siti said.

At present, Siti’s first child, Anisah, 28, works as an administrative staff member of a private company in Jakarta. Rahma, 23, Siti’s second child, works with a private bank in Slawi district, Tegal regency.

Esti Utami, 33, another fragrant tea factory worker in Tegal regency, said most of her household needs was supported by her income because her husband, who working daily as a farm laborer, doesn’t always return home with money.

”The greater portion of our household and children’s school expenses is borne by my income as a worker at this factory. It won’t be sufficient to rely only on my husband’s pay because he cannot bring money home every day,” said Esti, who has worked with the fragrant tea factory for five years.

The majority of the workers are women.

Based on the Tea Road Map for 2015-2045 drawn up by the Agriculture Ministry, the national tea industry in 2014 absorbed 255,000 workers and supported the lives of about 1.3 million people. The majority of the workers are women.

Indonesia Labor Institute analyst Rekson Silaban said women’s participation in the workforce kept increasing. This was not merely the result of women’s widening access to the labor market, but also because of the necessity for women to work in order to help support their families.

“Some of the women choose to work to help relieve the economic burden of their families. It’s because the burden of household needs is rising day after day,” Rekson said.

No access

Institute for Ecosoc Rights research Sri Palupi said the majority of women working in the tea and other industries had no access to economic resources, namely primarily land, capital and skills promotion.

Therefore, the life of female workers and families fully depends on capital owners. This situation weakens the position of female workers.

Women, according to Palupi, also bear a double burden. As housewives, women have to take care of household affairs first. Second, women often have to work in order to earn additional income for their families.

Not infrequently, women become the sole family breadwinner because of their spouses’ absence or idleness. Sometimes, their husbands are unable to work because of poor health.

For this reason, Palupi emphasized the government’s obligation to uplift the dignity of women. This is done by eliminating gender discrimination and giving women access to capital, land and skills promotion.

“The government should prioritize gender equality and justice in every policy, program and government project. To this end, there should be an affirmative policy for women,” Palupi added.

Meanwhile, at some tea shops in Karanganyar, Central Java, guests are enjoying the beautiful twilight. They were sipping tea worth Rp 50,000 to Rp 100,000 per pot, talking about delightful vacations and their promising future plans.

For Bella, Siti, Esti and tens of thousands of female workers in the national tea industry, the twilight is just like that of yesterday and previous days. There’s nothing new. Everything is part of an old story about reality, tears and sacrifice.(LAS/XTI/REK/DKA)