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View all search resultsSurabaya attracts more jobless migrants
As the country's second-largest city after Jakarta, Surabaya is still a popular place for migrant workers, which was further demonstrated by a large influx of newcomers who flocked to the city after Idul Fitri
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s the country's second-largest city after Jakarta, Surabaya is still a popular place for migrant workers, which was further demonstrated by a large influx of newcomers who flocked to the city after Idul Fitri.
Santoso, 45, from Nganjuk, East Java, decided to leave his village for Surabaya, with only Rp 30,000 in his pocket and a few items of clothing.
He said he joined two friends who were already employed in the provincial capital as manual workers.
"I decide to stop working as an agricultural manual worker in my village and to look for a job at a construction site here," Santoso told The Jakarta Post last week, as he disembarked a bus at Purabaya bus terminal, Surabaya.
He expects to have a daily income of Rp 25,000 in Surabaya.
Previously he earned only Rp 15,000 a day.
With no job prospects in his village, he said he was confident he would earn a better living in Surabaya.
"The weather is quite unpredictable these days, causing harvest failures among farmers in my village," he said.
"Many who work as agricultural manual workers are losing jobs."
He added he planned to rent a room in Surabaya once he got a job so his wife would be able to join him and work as a domestic helper.
They will leave their two teenage children to stay with a relative in his village.
"For now I will share a room at my friend's boarding house."
Hundreds of newcomers have reportedly been flocking to Surabaya following Idul Fitri celebrations.
The head of Surabaya Social Affairs Agency, Eko Haryanto, said this increased flow of migrants began during the fasting month.
He said at least 264 people, 102 of whom were homeless, were captured in a raid held during Ramadan.
Those captured were from Bali, Bandung and Cirebon (West Java), Bone, Brebes (Centra Java), Makassar (South Sulawesi) and Samarinda (East Kalimantan).
