Workers Plan To Stage Strike In Late October

Jakarta, Oct 2 (Antara) - Thousands of workers of the Indonesian Trade Union Confederation (KSPI) have planned to stage a two-day strike in several factories at the end of October, stated KSPI secretary Muhamad Rusdi. "We want to voice our aspirations. Our aspirations have never been heard or acted upon, and so we will hold a strike at the factory where we work," Muhammad Rusdi stated at the Hotel Indonesia (HI) Traffic Circle on Thursday. He remarked that the demonstration staged by his organization in HI roundabout was just a warm-up exercise. The demonstrations will intensify, if the workers` aspirations are not met, with two million workers going on strike for two days. Thousands of workers will continue to raise their demands to the incumbent and next governments for improving the welfare of the workers, such as the rejection of fuel price hike, 30 percent increase in the minimum wages, and the inclusion of more items in the Decent Livelihood Components (KHL). Averroes pointed out that the fuel price hike has become a major issue impacting the welfare of the workers as an additional monthly cost of Rp 500 thousand is levied on the workers due to the fuel price hike. In addition, the minimum wage, which is currently only Rp2.4 million, must be raised by 30 percent to Rp3.2 million, which is at par with that offered in other developing countries. The addition of items in the KHL is also part of the demands of the workers since the current KHL only comprises 60 items, which does not reflect the true welfare of the workers. The increase in the items in KHL from 60 to 84 should include the recreational and appearance needs of the workers, such as perfumes or deodorants. There was widespread belief that the health insurance for workers was still not properly managed as many hospitals refused to treat patients covered under the BPJS guarantee. "Only 86.4 million poor are covered under the state health insurance, while 50 million poor people, including temporary workers, are not covered," he added.