Thousands of Pertamina Workers Threaten to Go on Strike

Cilacap, C Java - Thousands of outsourced workers of state oil and gas firm Pertamina's refinery unit in Cilacap, Central Java, have threatened to go on strike on Wednesday unless the management of the company meets their demand. "We demand that the company scrap the outsourcing employment system because it harms workers. If the management does not make any decision by 00.00 western Indonesian time, we will go on strike on Wednesday," assistant for advocacy and monitoring to chief of the Federation of Cilacap Oil and Gas Labour Union (FSBCM) Paryono said here on Tuesday. The strike is a manifestation of outsourced workers' dissatisfaction at the management of the company which ignored their demand, he said. The outsourcing employment system chiefly harmed workers because it ignored their work experience, he said. Earlier, on November 20 last year, the workers also staged a rally outside the Cilacap district legislative body building demanding that the company scrap the outsourcing employment system and provide fair wages. (*)