Family of PLN employees stage protest against Kuntoro restructuring plans

Hundreds of family members of the employees of state-owned electricity company PLN staged a protest on Wednesday at the company's headquarters demanding company president Kuntoro Mangkusubroto to drop plans to cut down the number of employees as part of a restructuring plan.

The protesters also appealed to the government to prevent Kuntoro from realizing the plans.

They said that they didn't want to have the same fate like the former employees of state-owned tin mining firm PT Tambang Timah. Kuntoro made a massive employee lay off in Timah in the 80s to turn around the loss making company to become a world-class tin mining operator.

The protesters demanded the government to temporarily dismiss Kuntoro to allow him to settle his obligation to the ex-Timah employees.

PLN is currently under a serious financial problem. Kuntoro has proposed to the government to restructure the company in a bid to avoid it from being bankrupt. Part of the restructuring measure is employee lay off. (*)