Govt Strives to Prevent Layoff
The number of laid-off workers in Indonesia has dropped by 7,24 percent in the first semester of 2016 compared to that of last year, according to data of the Ministry of Manpower.
Based on the data from Directorate General of Industrial Relations and Workers Social Security of the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, the number of layoff cases in the first semester of 2016 is 1,494, while the number of laid-off workers in the same period is 7,954.
The figure indicates that there has been a decline as there were 126 cases with 8,575 laid-off workers in the same period last year.
Provisional data shows that there has been a decline in the number of laid-off workers by 621 or 7.24 percent in 2016 compared to the same period last year, Minister of Manpower Hanif Dhakiri said on Monday (22/8).
According to Hanif, most of the layoffs in the first semester of 2016 occurred in June, with 3,933 workers and 770 cases, followed by 1,414 workers in January, 1,305 workers and 422 cases in February, 1,076 workers and 13 cases in March, 213 workers and 69 cases in April, and 13 workers and 13 cases in May of the same year.
While in the same period last year, most of the layoffs occurred in April, with 2,256 workers and 25 cases, it was followed by 1,991 workers and 21 cases in May, 1,334 workers and 25 cases in June, 1,294 workers and 20 cases in March, 1,201 workers and 20 cases in February, and 499 workers and 15 cases in January.
The laid-off workers, the Minister added, comes from several sectors, including agriculture/fisheries, trading, service and investment, education, mining, infrastructure, transportation, finance, and industy sectors.
Hanif asserted that the Government keeps making preventive measures and strategies to avoid the layoff of workers/labors, as well as open a wider job opportunity, and reduce the number of unemployment.
The Government keeps trying to prevent an increasing in layoff. In addition, we also call on employers and employees to make bipartite forums and dialogs at companies more effective, the Minister added.
Hanif explained that the Ministry of Manpower has been clarifying all information on layoff plan. Those information, Hanif added, could be sourced from the report of manpower agency, trade unions/labor unions, employers as well as from the mass media.
We also coordinate with several sides to prevent the layoff. Do not let layoff occures, try to have bipartite dialog first. The Ministry of Manpower and Manpower Agency in the regions will assist the mediation in order to find the best solution, Hanif said adding that the Government does not want layoff to happen.
Hanif also requested the Manpower Agency at the Province and Regency/City levels to take several measures in order to make tripartite cooperation agency (LKS) between province and regency/city more effective.
The point is that we have to make early detection of layoffs effective, particularly in the regions, Hanif firmly said.
Several preventive measures that the employers can take are among others; reduce the wages and facilities for high-ranking workers, limit/scrap overtime, reduce working hours, reduce working day, temporarily send home the workers/labors in rotation.
Besides that, the other measures are not extending the contracts of workers which have expired and providing pensions for those who meets the classification.
However if the layoff cannot be avoided though the employers already took some preventions, the Government hopes the termination can be done through nice deliberation or dialog between the employers and employees, Hanif said.
The Government also wants them to ensure the laid-off workers get their severance payments. In the future, the Government will develop training program for the laid-off workers to transfer their skills.
After acquiring skills, the Government also encourage the laid-off workers to get Smallholder Business Credit (KUR), entrepreneurship, as well as other policy packages, Hanif concluded. (Biro Humas Kemnaker/ES) (RAS/EP/YM/Naster)
