New pension scheme burdens workers: Lawmakers

Jakarta Post

Lawmakers have reaffirmed their position of rejecting the sudden amendment of Government Regulation no. 46/2015 on pension funds.

House of Representatives Commission IX overseeing labor affairs said the provision that allows workers to withdraw their pension funds only after 10 years violated workers’ rights.

Commission IX member Irma Suryani said that the new regulation had triggered complaints from workers, especially workers whose contracts will expire in less than 10 years.

Irma also criticized the government for not running a public information campaign to familiarize workers with the new regulations. 

“The government should have coordinated with Commission IX in their campaigning about the revisions. Any revisions must consider the conditions of workers,” said Irma, a NasDem party lawmaker, during the meeting held to discuss the revisions on Monday.

Fellow commission IX member and Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) lawmaker Rieke Pitaloka said that until the government came up with a new regulation, it should continue to apply the old regulation, which allows workers to withdraw their pension benefits from the Workers Social Security Agency after five years.

“The government should backtrack on their decision and stick to the old minimum of five years for the benefit of the workers,” Rieke said. 

She appealed for the government to revert to the old regulation within the next 48 hours.

Manpower Minister Muhammad Hanif Dhakiri was not at the meeting with Commission IX on Monday at the House of Representatives. Hanif reportedly had to attend an urgent cabinet meeting with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.

Many members of the commission IX criticized his absence.

“Commission IX has decided that we can’t make any decisions without him present at this meeting. What we are seeing now is workers that are restless because the government is not communicating with them about the revision, and the minister needs to respond to their reactions,” chairman of Commission IX Dede Yusuf said. 

The minister was represented by Manpower Ministry secretary general Abdul Wahab Bangkona and Workers Social Security Agency director Elvyn G. Masassya during the meeting. 

Elvyn rebuffed the lawmakers’ statement that the government’s public relations campaign had been insufficient.

Elvyn argued that there was simply not enough time between the completion of the revision on June 30 and its implementation on July 1. - See more at: http://m.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/07/07/new-pension-scheme-burdens-workers-lawmakers.html#sthash.2hCqPOsM.dpuf