The Tragic Truth of Women Workers in Indonesia
The long debate regarding the limitation of women’s rights should be abandoned. The idea that women have no other choice, but to take care of domestic life is no longer relevant. The right to freely determine one’s destiny is a human right, and human rights are also women’s rights. At present, the wall of restrictions on women’s rights has gradually begun to collapse. Women began to have the same opportunities and opportunities as men, including in terms of work and careers. So, has this development been accompanied by the fulfillment of other women’s rights?
The Irony of the Fulfillment of the Rights of Women Workers
Women are still victims in the workplace
Life as a female worker in Indonesia is not an easy matter. There are still many women workers’ rights that are not fulfilled, both within formal and informal jobs. It is not uncommon for women to become victims at work. This is reflected in the rampant cases of abuse of women, especially female workers who work in labor-intensive sectors. 44% of female workers in Indonesia admitted to having experienced sexual harassment in the workplace, of which 89.94% were in the form of verbal harassment, 87.98% were physical harassment, and around 70.65% were in the form of gesture harassment. 61.8% of them are women under 15 years of age whose jobs are not protected by the Manpower Law (UU Ketenagakerjaan) and are often not given wages.
The fate of women workers in oil palm plantations
Women workers in the informal sector are the most ill-fated, such as those who work in the oil palm plantation. The Oil Palm Labor Coalition noted that at least 60% of the total number of plantation workers are female precariat workers. Women workers in oil palm plantations do not get permanent rights as laborers. They have to work without job security, no documentation of work agreements, and minimal wages. The suffering does not stop there, most companies within the industry do not provide adequate health protection and education. Not all oil palm plantations provide adequate personal protective equipment and provide information about the potential impacts of the chemicals used.
Gender Remuneration Gap
Amid the lack of protection and entitlements, women workers in Indonesia also experience the bitterness of the remuneration gap. Based on data displayed by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), in 2020 female workers earn 23% lower wages than their male colleagues who have the same workload. In the past 10 years, there hasn’t been much change in this issue. In 2010, female workers earned 23.64% fewer wages than their male counterparts. This is because income generated by working women is only considered as additional income and not the main breadwinner.
Solving the problem of the gender remuneration gap cannot be solved with education alone. Based on data released by the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) and the Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection (KemenPPA), female university graduates earn 31.9% less than their male counterparts.
Lack of Guarantee and Protection of the Women Workers’ Rights in the Informal Sector
International Conference of Labor Statistics (ICLS) defines the informal sector as a production unit in household businesses that are owned by households. Most of the workers in the informal sector are self-employed, casual/unpaid workers, casual workers, and family workers. According to data from the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection (KPPPA) and the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), in 2017 the percentage of women aged 15 years and overworking in the informal sector was 61.37 percent. This high statistic is unfortunately not accompanied by the fulfillment of the rights of women workers, as provided for women working in the formal sector. Informal sector workers tend to not receive aspects of legal protection such as severance pay, minimum wages, health and social security, and other types of legal protection.
The Lack of Protection of Women Workers from the Threats of Sexual Violence
As of now, Indonesia does not have laws that can guarantees the rights of women workers against the threat of sexual violence. Indonesia still relies on the Criminal Code (KUHP) as the basis for resolving cases of sexual violence, even tough it only recognizes two types of sexual violence, namely rape and sexual harassment. Hence if there is sexual violence outside of these two forms, a legal settlement will be very difficult and tend to distress victims of sexual violence. According to Komnas Perempuan’s End of Year Records (CATAHU), throughout 2019 there were 2,670 reported cases of sexual violence in the workplace and the type that occurred most often was sexual harassment which has not been regulated in any legal product.
Indonesia already has a draft law related to the elimination of sexual violence (RUU PKS). The RUU PKS comprehensively and specifically discusses what sexual violence is, the types of sexual violence, what actions are classified as sexual violence, power relations, even the handling and protection of victims in cases of sexual violence. Seeing the urgency of the high number of sexual violence cases that occurred, including in the workplace, this bill should be passed as positive law. Even after more than 5 years of its ratification delay, in 2020 the PKS Bill was once again withdrawn from the 2020 Prolegnas based on the “difficulty” when discussing the contents of the bill.
Women’s Rights in International Legal Instruments
In the international world, various legal instruments are regulating the rights of women workers in the workplace. The rights of women at work are guaranteed by international law which are regulated in:
- International Covenant on ESCR (ICESCR) and General Comment №23 of 2016 which provides more details on women’s rights at work, such as equal pay for work of equal value, maternity leave, etc.
- Relevant ILO Conventions:
This convention accepts, discusses, and decides on the principle of providing equal remuneration for women and men workers.
The ILO Convention held in Geneva adopted certain proposals regarding discrimination in the field of work and occupation. This Convention is based on the Philadelphia Declaration which affirms that all human beings, regardless of race, creed, or gender, have the right to pursue their material welfare and spiritual development in conditions of freedom and dignity, economic security and equal opportunity, and discrimination is a violation of rights stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In its opening, the ILO convention which was held in 1981 discussed and decided to accept a proposal regarding equal opportunity and equal treatment for men and women workers: workers with family responsibilities.
ILO conventions held in Geneva in 2000 discussed the situation of women workers and the need to provide protection against pregnancy, which is a shared responsibility between the government and the public.
The Rights of Women Workers in Positive Law in Indonesia
In Indonesia, the rights of women workers have been regulated in several legal products, for example, Law no. 13 of 2003 concerning Ketenagakerjaan (Manpower Law). As regulated in Article 82 paragraph (1) of the Manpower Law, a woman worker is entitled to receive a break for 1.5 (one and a half) months before and after giving birth to a child according to the calculation of the obstetrician or midwife. In the case of a pregnant female worker who has a miscarriage, based on Article 82 paragraph (2), she is also entitled to apply for 1.5 months of leave following a certificate from an obstetrician or midwife. It should be underlined that as long as a female worker takes leave according to the provisions of Article 82, she is still entitled to full wages. Subsequently a woman worker also has the right to breastfeed her child during working hours as regulated in Article 83.
The next woman’s right that is regulated in the Manpower Law is the right to menstrual leave. Article 81 paragraph (1) states “Female workers/laborers who experience pain during their menstrual period and has informed the employer are not obliged to work on the first and second day of menstruation”. The problem lies in paragraph 2 of the Article which states that the implementation of the provisions will be regulated in work agreements, company regulations, or collective working agreements. This results in the possibility for companies to cover up or even complicate the requirements for obtaining the right to menstrual leave.
Aside from that, the opaque definition of “experience pain” in Article 81 paragraph (1) is an obstacle for women workers to gain their rights. Indeed, there is a term known in medical science, namely dysmenorrhea or abdominal pain, and cramps caused during menstruation. If the definition of “experience pain” in Article 81 paragraph 1 refers to dysmenorrhea, it will be necessary to further regulate whether applying for leave requires a statement from a doctor or not. If the application for leave still requires a doctor’s certificate, there is no significant difference between menstrual leave and sick leave in general.
Problems and Potential Implications of the Omnibus Law on the Job Creation Bill
Based on the aforementioned problems, it can be seen that the regulation of the rights of women workers in positive law alone is not sufficient to guarantee that these rights will be fulfilled. Ironically, this situation is exacerbated by the plan to ratify the Job Creation Bill (RUU Ciptaker) using the Omnibus Law system. Omnibus Law itself is a method of making regulations that combine several rules with different substances into one rule in one legal product. Hence, if the Ciptaker Omnibus Law is passed, several laws will be replaced, one of which is the Manpower Law. The problem with the amendment of the Manpower Law through the Ciptaker Bill is the abolition of regulations on the rights of women workers that have been described previously (rights to maternity leave and rights to menstrual leave). If with such an arrangement these rights cannot be fully fulfilled, what if the regulation is abolished?
Know and Fight for Your Rights as a Female Worker
Fighting for the rights that should be received is certainly not easy. There are several ways you can do to regain your rights. The following things include:
- Be open about the income you earn — Talk openly about your remuneration with your male colleagues, especially those who have the same role and workload as you.
- Ask your place of work to publish Company Regulations (PP) or Collective Labor Agreement (PKB) — Company Regulations (PP) and Collective Labor Agreements (PKB) contain the rights that you will receive if you work in that place. Make sure the rights stated in those Company Regulations/Collective Labor Agreements abide by the standards within Indonesia’s national laws.
- Join a union — Joining a trade union will be very helpful for you, specifically in regard to negotiating with your place of work when it is needed. This is because trade unions have the power to hold bipartite and tripartite meetings, namely meetings for negotiations with companies. You will have more bargaining power in the eyes of the company. Always remember that you and your union colleagues have the right to conduct a dialogue(s) with the company (bipartite). If no agreement is reached, you can take the next route, namely the tripartite forum, which is between you, the union, and the company.
Conclusion
In today’s modern era, working women are no longer seen as something strange. Oftentimes we see women in various sectors of work. Unfortunately, these times are not accompanied by the development of guarantees for the fulfillment of the rights of women workers. Women workers often receive inappropriate treatment. In practice, women workers still do not receive their rights. It does not stop there. Indonesian women workers often experience various forms of harassment in the workplace. Many women workers in Indonesia admit to being harassed verbally, physically, and nonverbal signs. Ironically, with the increasing prevalence of harassment cases in the workplace, Indonesia still does not have a law that can guarantee the rights of women workers against the threat of sexual violence, which makes women continually haunted by fear.
In Indonesia, violations of rights are often felt by women workers. From not getting their rights for the biological happenings they experience (such as menstruation, pregnancy, and childbirth), to getting a lower wage than their male colleagues. Although national laws have regulated these rights, in practice, these rights are rarely obtained by women workers. Subsequently, women workers continue to feel insecure because there are no laws that can protect them.
As women, as well as friends of women, the reality of injustice in the fulfillment of these rights cannot be tolerated. The ideal condition called equality and welfare for female workers seems still so far away. We need a collective awareness of where we should fight together for what should be rightfully obtained. However, long before reaching collective awareness, there was an individual’s restlessness and conscience. Because when the law and the state are not reliable, who else can stand for ourselves but ourselves?
