Thousands of Pertamina's Dumai-Sei Pakning unit workers go on strike
Tuesday, May 1 2001 - 04:30 AM WIB
Thousands of contract workers employed by state oil and gas company Pertamina's Dumai-Sei Pakning production unit II went on strike on Monday (April 30) at the front of Putri Tujuh Dumai refinery plant, demanding for higher wages, Riau Pos reported on Tuesday.
The protesters, coming from tens of Pertamina's contractors, demanded that the state oil and gas company pay them according to the new minimum regional labor wages for oil and gas workers, set by the Riau governor through decree No. 23/I/2001.
"We are only asking (labor wages paid) according to the governor decree on the minimum regional wages for oil and gas workers. If our demand is not heeded, we will continue with our strike and refuse to go to work," one of the protesting workers said.
The protester said that based on the Riau governor decree, minimum basic wages for oil and gas workers are set at Rp 521,000 per month, excluding other benefits. When all the benefits are included, each oil and gas labor should get at least Rp 974,000 per month.
Currently each contract worker gets a total take home pay of Rp 524,000 per month.
The strike was proceeding peacefully, with labors sitting along Jl. Putri Tujuh in Dumai, right in front of the Dumai refinery plant.
Meanwhile, the spokesman of Pertamina's Dumai-Sei Pakning unit II, Sumarti, said that the governor decree no.23/I/2001 did not apply to workers at Pertamina's refinery plant in Dumai.
Sumarti contended the governor decree targeted only labors working in the upstream level of the oil and gas industry such as in drilling activities, while those working in the downstream level of the oil and gas industry such as in refinery was not included.
Sumarti contended that labors working at the upstream level of the oil and gas industry had higher working risks than their peers working in the downstream level, and therefore they deserved higher pay.
Nevertheless, Sumarti noted that Pertamina had agreed to raise labor wages at its Dumai refinery plant by 31 percent from Rp 400,000 per month to Rp 524,000 per month.
To solve the problem once and for all, Sumarti said, representatives of workers at the refinery plant had been sent to Jakarta to discuss the wage dispute with Pertamina's officials at the central office. (*)