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Workers, employers escalate threats after Jakarta wage hike
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Workers stage a rally in front of the House of Representatives in Senayan, Jakarta, on Aug. 25 to express their opposition to the Job Creation Law and to call on the government to do more to prevent mass layoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic. JP/Seto Wardhana (JP/Seto Wardhana)
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ensions between businesses and workers are high two days after Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan announced a higher regional minimum wage than previously set, with neither side looking keen to yield.
The announced revision would see Jakarta’s 2022 minimum wage rise 5.1 percent to Rp 4,641,854 (US$323), a far greater increase than the previously decided 0.85 percent raise to Rp 4,453,935. Workers have lauded the move and have vowed to do whatever they can to ensure the decision will stand.
Businesses, represented by the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), have said they will push for the decision to be revoked, arguing that the revised minimum wage hike violates a 2021 government regulation on wages based on the 2020 Job Creation Law.
“We will file a lawsuit against the revision through the state administrative court (PTUN),” Apindo chairman Hariyadi Sukamdani said during a press conference on Monday, adding that the groups would file the case as soon as the official document on the minimum wage was published.
“We urge all businesses in Jakarta not to apply the revised minimum wage while we are waiting for the PTUN ruling,” Hariyadi added.
Read also: Labor, businesses tense up over minimum wages, court ruling
The Jakarta governor's decision comes after a recent ruling by the Constitutional Court on the Job Creation Law reignited longstanding tensions between businesses and unions.
