Jakarta – An international labour body has strongly criticised Indonesian manufacturers for refusing to pay the new minimum wage, saying world retailers were unwilling to buy from "dirty sources."

The Brussels-based International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers' Federation, in a statement received Friday, attacked the "heavy-handed approach" of employers who are taking local authorities in Jakarta to court to try to block a rise in the wage.

The increase amounts to 38 percent in Jakarta, bringing the monthly minimum to the equivalent of 60 dollars, but bosses say the rise will drive them into bankruptcy.

Federation general secretary Neil Kearney, in a letter to the Indonesian Employers' Association, criticised what he called "poverty wages and appalling working conditions" in Indonesian manufacturing.

"Even before the new increase, many companies are already paying below the minimum wage, further damaging the reputation of Indonesian manufacturers," Kearney said in his letter. "International consumers no longer want to buy products produced by exploited labour. So if you succeed at keeping wages at poverty levels, you risk losing your best markets in US and Europe because industrialised world retailers can no longer be seen to be sourcing from dirty sources."

The rise in the minimum wage, which also applies elsewhere in the country but at different levels, took effect January 1. A court temporarily delayed its implementation in Jakarta after the bosses' association filed an objections.

The court later lifted its injunction and ordered employers to pay the increase pending a final judicial decision. Employers say they are already suffering from the global economic downturn along with rises in fuel prices and planned increases for electricity and phone calls.