It is clearly in the companies' own interests to halt the financial drain represented by these extra-legal payments. The report is concerned that British firms' demand for consumer safety does not appear to be matched by practical action to protect the safety and well-being of workers. Core international labour standards and Indonesian national legislation are routinely ignored. The authors estimate that if the Indonesian manufacturer PT Sindoll Pratama, for example, raised the wages of its staff by 75 per cent and passed the cost on to the UK buyer, Pentland, the cost to Pentland would be just 350,000 a year, equivalent to less than one per cent of annual operating profit. Often, the terms and conditions applying to women workers are inferior to those enjoyed by men and women often receive lower rates of pay.
Women can face sexual harassment and pregnancy can be used as an excuse to dismiss workers.
Britain is the second-largest foreign investor in Indonesia after Japan and British companies have a particular responsibility to ensure that the serious issues raised by this report are comprehensively addressed. The draft law incorporates a number of ministerial decrees regulating the right of workers to form trade unions. Right to Organise. It's a violation of the freedom to organise . The fact that the bill gave the ministry of manpower the authority to register unions would effectively allow the government to limit workers right to set up unions.