Jakarta – Hundreds of employees of Hotel Indonesia and the now-defunct Hotel Inna Wisata who were laid off three years ago rallied outside the Grand Indonesia business complex in Central Jakarta on Thursday to demand severance pay.

Joko Sujono, the former employees' leader, said the workers wanted to ensure there was no delay in the payment of the Rp 10 billion severance package. "Thank God the company paid out Rp 3.7 billion today," he said.

Hotel Indonesia, Indonesia's first five-star hotel, and Hotel Inna Wisata laid off over a thousand workers in 2004 to make way for the new Grand Indonesia development. Grand Indonesia, comprising a hotel, apartments and a shopping mall, will occupy 7 hectares of land in the heart of Jakarta when complete.

One of the former workers, Dedi Kristadi, said he had worked at Hotel Indonesia for 19 years. "Now I am an ojek (motorcycle taxi) driver. I'm really counting on the compensation money to further support my family," said Dedi, who brought his wife and children to the rally.

Joko said the workers reported PT Hotel Indonesia Natour to the Jakarta Manpower Agency in 2006 after it failed to disburse the agreed severance pay. The agency sided with the workers, ordering the company to pay out Rp 10 billion.

After continued failures by the company to pay the money, workers then brought the case to Central Jakarta District Court. In April this year the court seized Rp 10 billion from the company in leasing fees from the Grand Indonesia developers. The court ruled that the company had to disburse the money by June 14 at the latest.

However, Thursday's payout only ended up totaling Rp 3.7 billion, prompting workers to carry their protest on to the company's office in Mampang Prapatan, South Jakarta. "We wanted to know whether the company could pay the rest of the money today, so we needed to see the directors," Joko said.

After failing to secure a meeting with company directors, Joko said they would ask the court to urge the company to disburse the money next week.