'Parliament won't solve workers' problems'
Twenty nine labour federations now operate in Indonesia. The National Front for Labour Struggle, which has 11 affiliated regional organisations, is one of the more important federations. Green Left Weekly's JONATHAN SINGER interviewed FNPBI president DITA SARI in January about the organisation's work and development.
The formation of new unions such as the FNPBI is a sign of a growing militancy amongst Indonesia's working class. Sari described a typical FNPBI action: demanding the reinstatement of workers sacked because of union activity.
In November, at a textile company in Jakarta, Sari said, "300 workers, almost the whole work force, went on strike for about three days".
Two hundred and fifty of the workers stayed overnight at the national parliament building. "We went to see Amien Rais [the speaker of the upper house, the MPR]," Sari said. The FNPBI then went to a labour court, which after several weeks ruled the company couldn't sack workers because they wanted to join a union.
"The important thing we wanted the workers to realise when we brought them to the parliament was that ... the new parliament can't solve the problems faced by the working class in general, because the labour law is still very much on the company's side."
Moreover, Sari said, the government of President Abdurrahman Wahid doesn't have "a new political orientation towards the working class." It has appointed as minister of labour the allegedly corrupt Bomer Basaribu, who under Suharto chaired the government-controlled union, the SPSI, and who in 1996 attacked the two independent workers' organisations, the PPBI and SBSI.
"We protested against this minister", Sari said. "Wahid said Akbar Tanjung, the head of the [lower house of] parliament guaranteed Barasibu. If true, the new government has no understanding ... and, especially, no clear program [to] build an economic and political policy for the working people."
The FNPBI is demanding changes to labour laws, Sari said, including an increase in the wage bonus for the Muslim holiday month from the current one month's pay to one month's pay for each year of employment, more union representation on the national committee determining minimum wages, and criminal sanctions for companies that abuse workers' rights.
Unemployment is a big problem for Indonesia's workers. Sari said, "We want to stop companies dismissing workers. We have launched a campaign for a 32-hour week.
"The working week is usually 40 hours. Then people work overtime as well because they want to earn more money. In the economic crisis, though, the companies say they cannot pay the workers more.
"We anticipated that and said it would be better if the workers work 32 hours — four days — a week, so the companies can cut other costs and won't overproduce. And the workers, during the other three days, can look for other income from the informal sector.
"The 32-hour week would be on 40-hours pay. [Company] savings would be on the other costs."
Stopping the contract system is another important issue, Sari said. "The workers are hired for a certain job for a certain time. If work continues the workers can be rehired; if not, the companies just sack them. The companies don't have to pay compensation for sacking contract workers; if they were permanent, they would have to pay one month's wages."
Sari said there are four main union federations. The SPSI still exists and there is also the SPSI-Reform and the SBSI, led by Muchtar Pakpahan.
The SPSI-Reform "hardly ever show their strength, although SPSI-Reform joined in the action against Barasibu," Sari said. "We have joined in several demonstrations with the SBSI. Then there is the FNPBI."
The FNPBI was growing slowly, Sari said, among "dockworkers and other transport workers, and workers in manufacturing industries like textiles and also chemicals, metals, food and wood." The federation is also preparing to organise plantation workers, in cooperation with the peasant union, the STN.