Precarious work is a tumor which should be excised by any possibility. Nevertheless in Indonesia nobody do anything to guard people from labor agencies with their detrimental policy of employment. Moreover, these outsourcing companies are supported by government of the country. How to deal with it when you are working at premises of one company, while being an employee of another one? Everything is explained in Indrasari Tjandraningsih’s work State-Sponsored Precarious Work in Indonesia. It starts with describing the reasons of labor market flexibility establishment – economical and political crisis in Indonesia and the downfall of President Suharto’s regime. In a case of Indonesia, it has absorbed all the worst features of Western labor market. In time informal sector has replaced formal sector, which inflicts the spread of precarious employment. It starts the processes of “informalization” in formal sector, which totally changed the work conditions. Initially, flexible labor market was meant to liberalize economy and make Indonesian labor market competitive. At first sight the word “flexibility” seems to be something useful and comfortable for workers, but in real life it has a lot of disadvantages such as job insecurity, low wages, weakening of unions, etc. Being in a critical economical situation government had to attract investors (who need to hire and fire workers whenever they want) for quitting the crisis. And now companies can change the status of workers’ from permanent to non-permanent that means lower wage and security for employee and lower responsibility for employer. Also the flexible employment has worsened the authority of unions - the main defenders of labor movement. Many outsourced workers are reluctant to enter unions, because of fear to lose their job and unions have a little influence upon employers. It is obvious that because of outsourcing companies Indonesian workers swallowed the bait of employers who need nothing but cheap labor. Trade unions just need to become adjusted to the enemy and overcome their impotence.
Works Cited
Tjandraningsih, Indrasari State-Sponsored Precarious Work in Indonesia.
Center for Social Analysis, Bandung, …