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Salary not as big as their guts
Being trapped in a gondola cleaning high-rise windows is scary for those working as window cleaners
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eing trapped in a gondola cleaning high-rise windows is scary for those working as window cleaners. Projecting fear onto other activities is the only way they are able to face the moment.
“[When being trapped] I just chatted with my colleague so that we did not panic,” said window cleaner, Kosim, recalling an incident in 2009 when he was trapped in a gondola at about the 10th floor while cleaning a skyscraper in Kuningan business district, South Jakarta.
Daredevils: Workers clean the windows of a skyscraper on Jl. M.H. Thamrin in Central Jakarta. The salaries paid to window cleaners do not match their courage: Some claim they are paid as little as Rp 1 million (US$113) a month and are covered only by the state’s Jamsostek insurance program. JP/J. Adiguna
The gondola was stuck up there for about an hour because a technical problem halted the lift system, triggering an automatic shutdown of the entire system.
“I was very nervous, even after I contacted the building technical engineer through my walkie-talkie. Anything could happen in that situation,” he said.
The man, who had been working as a window cleaner for four years, said he was aware of the risks when he took the job.
“As a teenager, I loved to climb, so I was excited to take the job. Of course the risks are there, but I still wanted to do it,” he said, adding that the scariest moments were when the wind was strong.
With excessive pollution, many tall buildings in Jakarta count on brave people such as Kosim to maintain its luster.
A window cleaner’s salary, however, is apparently not as great as his courage.
Ahmad Yani, another window cleaner, said that he was paid Rp 1 million (US$113) a month and was protected by state workers’ insurance Jamsostek.
“It is small compared to the risks. Many of my relatives pushed me to find a safer job with a better salary. Sometimes I think about finding another job just to find a new environment, but not because I worry about my safety,” he said.
“I enjoy the scenery from up above, plus the breeze sometimes makes me sleepy,” Ahmad added.
Darwoto, a supervisor at a building maintenance company, PT Virya Surya Jana, said that a gondola worker should obtain an operational license, called an SIO (Surat Ijin Operasi).
“It is like a drivers license. [Window cleaners] have to join a three-day training program before they receive their license,” he said.
The license, issued by the Manpower and Transmigration Ministry and valid for five years, is given after the three-day training program, which includes instruction on knowledge of safety procedures and operating the gondola.
Safety procedures include wearing a helmet, full body harness and belt. This, however, does not guarantee one’s safety.
A gondola with three workers inside broke away last Wednesday and fell upon the 29th floor of the Batavia Tower building in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, killing one worker.
Maman Hermansyah, chairman of the association of experts on safety working at high-rise buildings (Asosiasi Ahli Keselamatan Kerja di Bangunan Tinggi ), said that
Indonesia was the second after China with the highest rate of work accidents at tall buildings.
“In 2006, five people fell and died while working at heights every day in Indonesia. In 2007, the figure rose to seven people every day,” he told the The Jakarta Post recently.
Maman, who is also the president of the Southeast Asia Climbing Federation, stressed the importance of regulating safety standards for working at height.
“Currently, the safety law only mentions one method in working at height, using rope that is, while there are many other methods, including using gondola,” he said.
Maman said that all workers working at heights, which include electricity engineers and window cleaners, should be trained and obtain a license.
According to Maman the association had issued certificates for about 600 workers working after they had been trained by institutions affiliated with the association, mostly those who work in the telecommunications industry. (swd)
