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Businesspeople brace for Dec.2 labor union strike
Businesspeople expressed hopes that the labor unions’ plans to go on strike across the country on Dec.2 to demand higher wages and the arrest of non-active Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama, would run peacefully.
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Protest: Thousands of members of the Indonesian Metal Workers Federation (FSPMI) hold a rally in front of the State Palace in Central Jakarta in a recent file photo, demanding the government stop ongoing massive layoffs at a number of labor-intensive factories around the country. (JP/Don)
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usinesspeople expressed hopes that the labor unions’ plans to go on strike across the country on Dec.2 to demand higher wages and the arrest of non-active Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama would run peacefully.
“We hope that the mass rally is peaceful and under control, and does not get exploited by other parties who want to take advantage of the situation,” Apindo deputy chair Shinta Widjaja Kamdani said Thursday.
Shinta said that companies had tightened controls and coordination with labor unions in their areas to prevent actions that could disrupt business activities.
The Confederation of Indonesian Worker Unions (KSPI) chair, Said Iqbal, said that businesses should not worry about the national labor strike because such acts were common in many other countries and protected by the law.
“To ensure good relations with companies, most of the workers who participate in the rally will exchange their work days. Instead of working on Friday, the will work on Saturday or request leave,” he told The Jakarta Post.
Said said that labor unions were demanding the revocation of Government Regulation No. 78/2015 concerning wages and also an increase in the minimum wage of between 15 percent and 20 percent.
The strike was scheduled for the same day as the rally initiated by the National Movement to Safeguard the Indonesian Ulema Council's Fatwa (GNPF-MUI) because protesters had the same interest, which was to arrest Ahok, he explained.
Between 50,000 and 100,000 workers will join the rally from the Jabodetabek area and Karawang and Purwakarta in West Java. The strike will be staged in 20 provinces across the country. (win)
