Semarang – Hundreds of workers of the PT Nyonya Meneer jamu (traditional herbal medicine) factory in Semarang, Central Java, staged a protest on Wednesday, demanding the company pay their January to May monthly salaries.
They also demanded that management pay their daily wages for 13 weeks, meal allowance from February to June and overdue Health Care and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan) fees from 2012.
They staged the rally along the main road in front of the factory from the morning. They then entered the factory premises at 10 a.m. local time. Their actions, however, did not attract the attention of motorists passing along the main Java north coast highway.
"I've been working here for the past 38 years. We have asked the company to pay the daily wage arrears of 13 weeks. We are paid Rp 480,000 (about US$36) weekly, in addition to the daily meal allowance of Rp 8,000," said factory worker Parti.
Another worker, 60-year-old Kodriyah, who has been working there since she was a teenager, said, "I started working here with a starting salary of Rp 40 per week."