KPC says G-4 provides job opportunity for local people

President of the giant coal mining company PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC) Grant Thorne said that the existence of the U.S.-based G-4 security company would provide job opportunity for the local people of Sangatta in East Kalimantan.

The Kaltim Post daily quoted Thorne as saying that G-4 planned to recruit some 80 local people to be trained as professional security staff.

Thorne made the comments following renewed criticism over the hiring of G-4 by KPC. Hundreds of local people were reportedly to have staged a rally Tuesday at the East Kutai legislative council to protest the existence of G-4 as the company would eliminate the change of the local people to work as security staff in KPC. Some 39 former security staffs of KPC also met with East Kutai regent to seek solution to their problem. The security staffs decided to leave KPC after the company hired G-4.

KPC hired G-4 in August last year in a bid to boost security at its coal mining operation in Sangatta. KPC offered its ex-security staffs to either work under G-4, transferred to other division at KPC or quit the company with a certain amount of compensation.

Some 39 staffs decided to quit from the company.

Thorned dismissed suggestion that the existence of G-4 would sideline the local people. He said that G-4 instead would hire more local people to become professional security guards with higher salary.

Meanwhile, head of KPC Balikpapan office Hasrul Sani said that other companies in the province had hired G-4 without facing any problem or difficulties.(*)