Alfitria Nefi P, Jakarta – Indonesia's textile sector faces a critical challenge following the bankruptcy of PT Sri Rejeki Isman Textile (Sritex), Southeast Asia's largest textile manufacturer.
Edy Wuryanto, a member of Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR) Commission IX, has called on the government to actively seek new investors to rejuvenate the industry and provide jobs for thousands of displaced workers.
"New investors, supported by fiscal incentives, can revive the factory and re-employ Sritex workers," Edy said in a press release on Thursday, November 13, 2025.
Edy emphasized that simply selling Sritex's assets to raise funds is not enough. While asset sales could help pay outstanding wages, he argued that attracting new investors is crucial to absorbing the local workforce and sustaining the economy in Sukoharjo.
He proposed a strategic investment stimulus package, including tax exemptions for up to five years, easier import procedures for raw materials and machinery, and guarantees for using local labor.
"This approach provides a dual solution: settling workers' rights while restoring the local economy affected by the factory's closure. The government must not only distribute aid but also reopen hope and create job opportunities," Edy said.
Currently, more than 10,000 Sritex employees in Sukoharjo have been laid off since the company was declared bankrupt by the Commercial Court in Semarang in February 2025.
The new curator has so far paid wages only up to February, leaving workers without severance pay or holiday bonuses as they await the results of asset sales.
Edy pledged to continue overseeing the resolution of former Sritex employees' rights and called for the creation of a cross-ministerial team to devise a national strategy for reviving the textile industry.
He also urged the government and Sritex's curator to promptly disburse severance pay and holiday bonuses to the affected workers, whose livelihoods have been on hold since early March 2025.