Involving All Parties in Omnibus Bill Deliberation

The deliberation on the omnibus bill on job creation should be carried out in depth by involving all interested parties. The bargaining power of workers needs to be maintained.

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO

Labor activists string up banners ahead of a protest on Wednesday (12/2/2020) at the House of Representatives in Senayan, Jakarta. The protesters objected to the omnibus bill on job creation, which they claimed would sacrifice workers welfare for the sake of investment. They say that the bill threatens workers rights and welfare by excluding detailed provisions on minimum wage and the hourly wage system, eliminating severance pay, reducing work hours and altering the labor system.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS - A number of provisions on the protection of workers stipulated in Law No. 13/2003 on manpower no longer exist in the omnibus law on job creation submitted by the government to the House of Representatives on Wednesday. Some of the removed articles include Article 169 paragraph 2 and Article 172.

Article 169 paragraph 2 and Article 172 of the Manpower Law provide financial and legal protections for laid off workers and those who want to resign. Article 169 paragraph 2 stipulates that laid off workers, under certain circumstances, can get severance pay twice the established severance standard.

The double severance pay can be given under certain conditions, such as if, during an industrial relations dispute, the employer is proven to have persecuted or threatened workers, to have not paid wages on time for three consecutive months or to have not fulfilled obligations to workers.

If the article is abolished, the bargaining power of workers facing companies will be weaker.

Another double severance pay provision was eliminated through the abolition of Article 172 in the Manpower Law. The article stipulates that workers who experience prolonged illness and disability due to work accidents can file for a layoff and be given severance pay of twice their salary.

The chairman of the Indonesian Federation of Trade Unions, Indra Munaswar, said in Jakarta on Thursday that giving double severance pay under certain conditions was needed to help workers who were laid off or those who filed for resignation.

Also read : Investments Should Not Ignore Workers’ Rights

The abolition of Article 169 removes the rights of workers to file a lawsuit and to request dismissal from the court. The article was originally intended to enable workers to apply for layoffs with industrial relations dispute settlement institutions if employers harmed them.

Workers, Indra said, could also sue the company if it abused or threatened workers, did not pay wages on time for three consecutive months or did not carry out obligations promised to workers. The article has provided legal protection for workers who feel they have been treated unfairly by companies. The most common cases have occurred because overdue wages had not been paid.

"If the article is abolished, the bargaining power of workers facing companies will be weaker," he said.

KOMPAS/ALIF ICHWAN

Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto (center left), accompanied by House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Puan Maharani (center right), meets the press after a closed-door meeting on Wednesday (12/2/2020) at the Senayan legislative complex, Jakarta. The pair, accompanied by several other Cabinet members, presented the President\'s Letter on the omnibus bill on job creation, which was delivered to the House on Feb. 12.

Discuss a number of issues

The government rejects the notion that the omnibus law on job creation reduces the rights and protections of workers. The director general of industrial relations and social security development at the Manpower Ministry, Haiyani Rumondang, said workers had been involved in the drafting process.

In mid-November 2019, the government invited leaders from a number of labor associations to discuss the bill. The meeting was held to solicit input from labor representatives on a number of crucial employment issues. "All our directors were present. I chaired the meeting. We asked the labor representatives about severance pay, layoffs and job loss guarantees. We discussed the issues that needed to be corrected," he said.

Regarding the removal of several articles related to layoffs, Haiyani said workers did not need to worry because Law No. 2/2004 on the settlement of industrial relations disputes (PHI) remains in force. "The PHI Law will not be changed with the implementation of the omnibus law on job creation. So the procedure is still regulated; [workers] can\'t be laid off unilaterally," he said.

Involve all parties

Amid differences over the substance of the problematic bills, the targeted time for their deliberation is relatively fast. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has previous asked that the deliberation on the bill in the House and in the government be completed in the next 100 working days.

Based on the results of a public discussion and consultation coordination team meeting on the omnibus bill on job creation, which was initiated by the government and involved employers and workers in Jakarta on Thursday, the bill’s deliberation could be completed by mid-May.

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

President Joko Widodo, Vice President Ma’ruf Amin and the Cabinet discuss the draft omnibus bill on job creation during a limited meeting on Wednesday (15/1/2020) at the Presidential Office in Jakarta.

The bill is also expected to be passed at the same time as the completion of the drafting of its implementing regulations. The public consultation team will be running a marathon for the next four weeks to discuss the substance of the bill, together with the political process of the deliberation between the House and the government.

Indonesian Labor Institute executive secretary Andy William Sinaga said the bill should get responses from three stakeholders in the national industrial relations system, namely the government, employers and trade unions. "The House, in discussing the bill, needs to be open to receiving input from the three industrial relations stakeholders," he said.

A number of factions in the House have prepared plans to explore the two omnibus bills that the government has delivered. They promised to involve those who would be affected in the compilation of a problem inventory list (DIM).

The PDI-P faction promises to synergize the interests of workers, employers and the government.

Trimedya Panjaitan, a member of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said that in the drafting of the DIM on the omnibus bills on tax and job creation, the PDI-P promised to involve as many parties as possible, including those who would be affected.

"The PDI-P faction promises to synergize the interests of workers, employers and the government. Therefore, no one will be harmed," he said.

Herman Khaeron, a House legislator with the Democratic Party, believes that it is important to have public consultations with relevant parties and solicit opinions from various media outlets and the public.

The deputy chair of labor and industrial relations at the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), Anton J. Supit, said the omnibus bill on job creation would help increase investment and employment. Jobs are needed by tens of millions of people in Indonesia. Last year, open unemployment in Indonesia reached 7.05 million people. In addition, every year the additional number of unemployed people is 2.24 million, 8.14 million are underemployed and 28.41 million work part time.