Pertamina workers on strike demanding wage increase

Thousands of temporary workers at Pertamina's office in Riau continued their protests on Tuesday as the state owned oil company refused to meet their demand to increase their salaries.

Riau Pos daily reported on Wednesday that the workers, who started their protests on Tuesday, demanded Pertamina to adjust their salaries into the province's new minimum wage regulation.

Pertamina initially promised to make the adjustment on Monday but it cancelled the plan for unknown reasons, one of the workers said.

According to the new minimum wage standard, a worker should at least receive a basic salary of Rp 521,000 and welfare allowance of Rp 97,000 a month, while Pertamina pays its contract workers Rp 524,000 in total.

Sukarmin, the spokesman for Pertamina's Dumai office, said that the wage payment was based on the contract with the workers supplier.(*)