Jakarta – PT Freeport Indonesia president director and CEO Armando Mahler said that the company had decided not to pay the salaries of workers who have been on strike since Sept. 15.

"We all know that the strike has been conducted since midnight Sept. 15, local time. The management has decided not to pay salaries during their strike. No work, no pay," said Mahler on Saturday evening in Jayapura, as quoted by Antara state news agency.

Mahler said that the company had paid the salaries of workers who also went on strike in July because the payment was part of the requirements demanded by the workers' union before returning to work.

"That [salary payment] is out of our generosity. In this second strike, we have strongly committed to not paying the salaries of those on strike," he said.

He called on workers to resume their jobs because they themselves would bear the brunt of the strike's consequences, citing that every worker participating in the strike loses at least Rp 577,000 per day (US$65.7).