Batam – Around 1,000 employees of PT Sanmina-SCI Batam went on strike on Thursday, demanding housing allowances, wage increases and an explanation over the employment of expatriates deemed to be not in line with regulations.

The strike was the third carried out by workers who said that their rights have been ignored by the company, which is a subsidiary of the US-based Sanmina-SCI.

The company's Indonesian Metal Workers Federation (FSPMI) working unit leader Darmo Juwono told The Jakarta Post that workers went on strike because the company failed to pay a wage-rises of Rp 222,000 (US$26) and housing allowances, which have been standard rights for the past nine years. The workers demanded a monthly housing allowance of between Rp 300,000 and Rp 700,000.

"We reached a deadlock after the negotiation on Wednesday, so we went on strike until our demands are met. The permit for the work stoppage is valid for three days. If our demands are not met, we will continue striking," said Darmo, who is an assistant engineer at PT Sanmina.

The company has been operating in the Batamindo Industrial Zone since 2003 and employs 1,000 workers, with 600 of them permanent employees and 400 others on contracts. The company assembles circuit boards and servers for electronic devices for the banking and health sectors.

A senior engineer at the company, Agus Elfrid Simorangkir, said that he was disappointed with the company's policy of employing foreign workers from Malaysia and Singapore.

"My position is the same as theirs, but they frequently ask me to work on something despite being paid more than me. We demand the employment of the expatriates be in line with procedures," Agus said.