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married worker in the city should be paid Rp 4 million (US$400) per month to enable him/her to take part in social security programs, send their children to school and purchase affordable housing, says deputy governor Basuki '€œAhok'€ Tjahaja Purnama.

'€œA single worker in the city receives almost Rp 2 million and this excludes social security programs. According to our assessment, the minimum provincial wage in the city is Rp 4 million or more. This is the actual minimum wage for a married worker,'€ Kompas.com quoted him as saying at City Hall here on Monday.

Ahok considered the remuneration system less fair because only 40 components of commodities were taken to calculate the standard cost of living (KHL) and he would consider around 120 components needed to set a decent wage for workers in general.

He pointed out that the current minimum wage of Rp 2.2 million was set without any consideration toward education and insurance aspects. '€œBy raising the minimum wage to Rp 4 million, married workers will be able to send their children to school and university, take part in social security programs and own a decent home,'€ he said.

He said that the current minimum wage was only substantial for unmarried workers while most married workers found the minimum wage too little and insufficient to support their families.

'€œIt is my task, along with the governor to make residents'€™ stomachs, minds and wallets full of food, education and money. To fill their wallets, their monthly income must be set at Rp 4 million at the very least,'€ he said.

Separately, labor unions appreciated Ahok'€™s statement but said they would also propose a hike of at least 50 percent for provincial minimum wages due to the recent fuel price hike and soaring prices of basic commodities and of transportation fares and housing rent.

'€œAll six confederations of the labor unions are of the same opinion that they will join forces to fight for a 50 percent increase for the provincial minimum wage to maintain their purchasing power amid soaring prices of commodities,'€ chairman of the Confederation of Indonesian Workers Union (KSPI) Iqbal told The Jakarta Post.

He said labor unions agreed with the deputy governor that the ideal minimum wage should be Rp 4 million, so married workers could afford to pay the premiums for the national social security program, provide good education for their children and own simple homes.

The proposal will likely meet strong opposition from employers and labor-intensive companies as happened when Jokowi raised the minimum wage to Rp 2.2 million in 2013 from Rp 1,520,000 in 2012.

Secretary-general of the Indonesian Workers Organization (OPSI) Timboel Siregar concurred and said the city'€™s government should not only propose a wage rise but also take control of basic commodity prices and transportation fares that have always affected low-income people'€™s livelihoods.

He also criticized Government Regulation No. 48/2013 on bonuses for civil servants, legislators and the President as unfair while Idul Fitri bonuses for private sector workers was still uncertain.

'€œPresident Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono who signs the government regulation and other public officials should feel ashamed of taking the bonus as they are already well paid,'€ he said.