30 RI migrant worker placement firms form new body

Thirty firms who place Indonesian workers in neighboring Brunei on Tuesday launched a new association aimed at enhancing workers' bargaining position.

The Indonesian Migrant Worker Placement Firms Association (Gappro TKI) wants to fight for an increase in the minimum wage for workers and convince Brunei to tighten regulations on Indonesian workers entering the country individually, Gappro TKI chairman Pandu Sembiring said.

“If an individual worker gets in trouble, no one is responsible for them and they usually don't have personal insurance,” he said Tuesday in a press statement.

Arifin Purba of the National Agency for the Placement and Protection of Overseas Labor (BNP2TKI) said the agency supported the formation of the new association.

“Placement firms used to compete against one another. Now they are consolidating under one association. I hope it can improve our workers' welfare,” he said.

The Indonesian embassy in Brunei says there were more than 49,000 Indonesian migrant workers in the country, most working in the informal sector.

Brunei this year requires 40,000 migrant workers in various sectors, including construction, mining and services, while Indonesia is expected to send 8,300 workers. (lfr)