Indonesian Labour Movement and the Struggle for Social

Security for All

Amsterdam, 5 September 2013

State Work accident

Healthcare Pension Unemploy-ment

Family benefit

Social costs

(%PDB)

Japan v V V V V 14,1

South Korea V V V 5,6

Taiwan V V V V 11,1

Singapore V V V 3,3

Indonesia V V V 1,7

Malaysia V V V 2,9

Thailand v V V V V 1,9

% of population covered

% of population not covered

Pension 7 93

Unemployment 0 100

Healthcare 50,8 49,2

Work accident, old age benefits

? !

Type of services Amount (million)

Askes Sosial (civil servants) 14,9

Askes Komersial 2,2

Jamsostek (formal private sector) 3,9

ASABRI (military/police) 2,0

Other insurances 6.6

Jamkesmas (national, only for the poor) 76,4

Jamkesmas Daerah (regional, only for the poor) 10,8

Total 116,8

% of population (year 2009 = 230 millions) 50.8%

UDHR (10 Dec 1948) Article 25 section 1 – hak kesehatan dan kesejahteraan, jaminan kesehatan, cacat, janda, menganggur/PHK, hari tua)

ILO Convention 102 (1952) Hak jaminan sosial: nganggur, sakit, cacat, janda, hari tua

Ratification

Indonesian Constitution 1945 Art. 28H(3) the right to social security Art. 34(2) the state shall develop social security for all participants

TAP MPR (Highest People’s Assembly) No. X/2001 (assigning the President to make SJSN)

Kepres No.20/2002 (20-02) (the formation of SJSN team)

SJSN Act No. 40/2004

Kepseswapres No. 7/ 2001, 21 March 2001 (the formation of task force on SJSN)

Legal-­‐Historical  Founda3on  

BPJS Act No. 24/2011

Labour’s role

•  All  Indonesia  popula3on  enjoy  appropriate  healtcare  when  sick,  any$me  and  anywhere  in  the  country  

•  All  old  age  popula$on  and/or  disabled  people  will  have  got  monthly  pension  3ll  death  

•  All  children  whose  parents  are  dead  and/or  disabled  before  the  re3rement,  will  have  monthly  pension  supports  un3l  they  become  economically  independent  

1.  Health 2.  Work accidence (JKK) 3.  Old age (JHT) 4.  Pension (JP) 5.  Life/death (JKm)

1.   Mutual  assistance;  2.   Not  for  profit;  5.   Transparency;  6.   Prudence;    7.   Accountability;  8.  Portability;  9.  Mandatory  membership;  10.  Trust  fund;  11.  Return  on  the  management  of  social  security  fund  to  

be  used  entirely  developing  program  for  the  interest  of  participants  

¡  SJSN  funds  based  on  two  pilars  (Art.  1)  §  Social  assistance  in  the  form  of  contribution  assistance  by  the  state  on  behalf  of  the  destitutes  and  the  poor  (non-­‐formal  economy  workers?)  

§  Social  insurance  in  the  form  of  mandatory  savings  based  on  the  percentage  of  salaries,  together  with  the  employers.  

¡  SJSN  guarantees  same  benefits  for  all  (civil  servants,  private  sector  workers,  peasants,  five  leggged  traders,  small  entrepreneurs).  

•  Taken from a demonstration by the KAJS (Action Committee for Social Security Reform);

•  10,000 workers in front of the Parliament Building, Jakarta, April 6, 2010;

•  the first of a series in various regions in April-June 2010.

One picture…

And a thousand words… a.  The KAJS is a national alliance consisting of tens of

trade unions, peasants organisations, and other CSOs à led by a collective leadership (‘presidium’)

b.  Trade unions play most important roles in it, whereby the FSPMI (Indonesian Metal Workers Union) is the key (initiator and main facilitator of KAJS), which later inspired other unions.

c.  Quite exceptional: Indonesian workers demand something beyond their traditional issues = social security reforms (based on Act No. 40/2004 which overdued since 19 October 2009)

d.  The Act will revolutionise Indonesia’s absence of a universal social security system by particularly targeting the transformation of the existing wealth SOEs that provide social security.

e.  The KAJS has proved to be a ‘bite’ for the headstrong SBY regime for not wanting to implement the new system (a citizen lawsuit against the President cs., continuous mass actions for more than 2 years and still active!).

f.  Understanding and influence of international development (comparing Obama with SBY); and demands for social security as constitutional rights.

g.  For the first time ever, trade unions show some willingness and, more importantly, ability to raise social reform demands that go beyond their ‘regular’ demands (such as wages).

h.  The KAJS phenomenon led to several development in the Indonesian labour movement today.

Growing confidence: rising of local alliances

•  Eventual enactment of the Social Security Providers Act (UU BPJS) à small victory for the labour movement –  Growing confidence of the movement, inspiring further

movement, particularly in the regions through local unions’ alliances.

–  Filling the gap left by the weak central organisations à facilitating meetings and cooperation between different sectors, rising political bargaining, etc.

–  Very active in local industrial relations setting, e.g., minimum wages.

–  Similar trends occur at the national level as well with the confederations (KSPI, KSPSI and KSBSI)

Growing confidence: labour movement as spokeperson for

popular issues •  Obon Tabroni (leader of BBB):

–  “Workers only demand some share of the profits of employers, our social security…”

•  Rejection of fuel price hike – threats to launch general strikes

•  May Day 2012: demand the BPJS to operate as scheduled (BPJS Kesehatan on 1 January 2014 & BPJS Ketenagakerjaan on 1 Juli 2015)

•  With the absence of political parties with popular ideology, the labour movement fills part of the gap.

Typology of TU Movement in Europe (Richard Hyman, 2001)

•  Three models of unions developed in Europe based on their orientation: –  Market-orientated unions see unions as generally

economic actors pursuing economic goals (‘business unionism’), such as welfare of members, especially through collective bargaining within the labour market.

–  Class-orientated unions see unions as vehicles of class struggle and their role is to promote working class interests and the transformation of society in a revolution direction.

–  While society-orientated unions see unions as social actors and social partners, pursuing constructive role of labour in society, by strengthening the voice of workers in the broader society and act as a force of social, moral and political integration.

The typology …

– In practice these three ideal types are overlapping and mixtures, although combining the all three is almost impossible within any one organisation.

– Yet, it is useful in mapping the trajectory of unions over time.

Indonesia’s typology •  The current situation is an important stage in the Indonesian

social contexts as those with economic powers (instead of merely intellectual powers as other pro-democratic actors) have joined the (social) movement

•  Strikes everywhere (almost everyday): one for all, all for one. •  Growing political influence and interests of the labour movement

à a return of political unionism: candidates from labour for legislators controlled by labour through any political parties.

•  Big demonstrations with social demands such as social securityà paradigm shift from market orientated towards social orientated unionism.

•  New economic and political arrangements are eventual: could be long and painful, yet necessary and beneficial for the future of the whole society.