InfoSAWIT, BOGOR - PT SPMN is the palm oil plantation company which has about 7.714 hectares of plantation. They are in Village of Karang Sari, Sub district of Paranggean, District of Kotawaringin Timur (Kotim), Central Kalimantan. PT SPMN is the subsidiary of TSH Group Malaysia and as the member of Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).
PT SPMN runs the salary within whole work to do and this could not guarantee that the labors’ salary would not be the same with the regional minimum wage (RMW).
The secretary of SEPASI (Serikat Pekerja Sawit Indonesia), PT SPMN, Dianto said that the company targets certain work as the base to pay their salary. They should finish the target if they want to get the same RMW. If they don’t, there would not be the same numbers.
“For the harvesters, this system is difficult. For example, if the trees are not in fruit, the harvesters would be difficult to get the targets and their salary would not be the same,” he said in the official statement to InfoSAWIT, Tuesday (26/3/2019)
The labors in PT SPMN had protested the salary system and reported to the labor and transmigration agency in Kotawaringin Timur, but there is no better action.
“The response from the company about this issue is that the company would give top up or paying the margin of their salary so that the labors could get the RMW. But the company never realizes it.
Not every labor gets the top up in every single month. The numbers are not the same as its calculation and this raises issue because of unclear calculation and criteria of top up,” Dianto said.
Meanwhile the Spesialis Buruh Perkebunan of Sawit Watch, Zidane said that the labors’ condition in PT SPMN is the real proof that the work and salary system in Indonesia just makes them as the tools to get productivity.
“By the system, there is no quarantee that the labors would get their salary as it is regulated. In 2016 Sawit Watch and Amnesty International did researches in the plantations of PT SPMN and told some recommendations to improve their condition. But the field facts showed that the recommendation found a dead end,” Zidane said.
Not only about salary issue happens in PT SPMN.
Kartika Sari of PROGRESS Palangkaraya who accompanied them in PT SPMN told the other issues, such as, the tools of work are bad. This made accidents for the labors; the BPJS cards are not distributed well; the electricity is on for 7 hours a day. These are the issues they face.
The peak was in February 2018. Hundreds labors of PT SPMN protested and claimed to improve the condition. But they should face intimidation and pressure.
“The coordinators of the union were asked for stopping the claim. As a matter of fact, they are free to tell their aspiration,” Kartika said. (T2)
