Considering Whether Or Not To Cut The Allowance For Collective Leave At The End Of The Year

Illustration (Pixabay)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has asked his staff to reduce the allowance for collective leave at the end of the year to prevent an increase in COVID-19 cases.

The Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture (Menko PMK) Muhadjir Effendy made Jokowi's request regarding the reduction of the joint leave allowance after attending a limited meeting regarding the handling of COVID-19 at the State Palace, Jakarta. In this meeting, said Muhadjir, Jokowi requested that year-end joint leave and Eid al-Fitr substitute leave be trimmed.

In addition, the former Minister of Education and Culture (Mendikbud) said Jokowi also asked the Coordinating Ministry for PMK to hold a coordination meeting with related ministries and institutions to set a date for reducing the period of collective leave at the end of the year.

The epidemiologist from Australia's Griffith University Dicky Budiman appreciated the request to cut the shared leave allowance. He said, this wish was right, especially when the holiday cluster often occurs when there is a long holiday which is then used by the community for a vacation.

"So this long holiday pruning is right. In the case of this long holiday, we want to reduce it in the sense that Christmas is just Christmas, want the day before or after but do not leave the region. Or New Year. Because of this we learn from the events of the previous long holiday. "said Dicky when contacted by VOI, Tuesday, November 24.

He explained, the moment of the long holiday in the previous month, has proven to have an impact on the increase in COVID-19 cases in the country. This is based on the occurrence of movement or mass mobilization from one place to another and high-intensity human interaction.

However, Dicky reminded, the government is actually not enough just to reduce the allowance for collective leave at the end of this year. The government, he continued, must prohibit all forms of activities that cause crowds in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic including the 2020 Pilkada activities.

"So it is not just a long holiday at the end of the year, every type of activity that results in mass mobilization, mass movement, and mass interaction that continues to occur will be very risky in the worsening of the spread of COVID-19. Among them, of course, includes demonstrations, mass crowds, including regional elections. , "he said.

"So this can't be, oh this is a limited long holiday, this one is okay. It can't, because this virus sees which ones they can and easily catch," he added.

In addition, Dicky also mentioned that the current conditions for controlling the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia are still far from safe. Moreover, if you look at the positivity rate of COVID-19 in the country, it is still in the tens of percent, while the World Health Organization (WHO) standard this figure should be below five percent.

"Then the death rate in Indonesia is also high at this time. And there has not been a significant reduction in cases in two consecutive weeks. So that all this will greatly provide a supportive climate for the spread of COVID-19," he said.

Workers disagree

Cutting down on this joint leave allowance has also become a highlight for labor groups. Although he said that the decision to reduce the leave would be examined first, the Secretary General of the Central Executive Board of the Federation of Indonesian Metal Workers Union (FSPMI) Riden Hatam Azis emphasized that workers have the right to leave.

"Leave should not be reduced because this is the worker's right," said Riden when contacted.

In addition, he assessed that the current COVID-19, there are procedures for handling and prevention. It's just that, because the government is always worried about economic problems, it seems that handling COVID-19 is like there is no progress and makes the public confused.

"So COVID-19 is not over but the economy is not better either," he said.

Hotel and restaurant entrepreneurs get ready to bite their fingers

Deputy Chairman of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) Maulana Yusran said, cutting off holidays at the end of this year will certainly have an impact on restaurants and hotels in particular. Moreover, year-end holidays are one of the three momentum that can be used to gain turnover, in addition to the Eid holidays and class upgrades that have passed at the beginning of the year.

"So there are three of the hotels' point of view, namely Eid which is the biggest movement, school holidays, and Christmas New Year. For other holidays there are movements but the biggest is in the three," said Yusran.

So that with the existing conditions, the long holiday at the end of this year is one of the hopes for business actors, especially hotels and restaurants, to survive in the midst of a pandemic.

"So if asked, what about the existence of such a policy, yes, we will be disappointed because the problem is that for us, business actors are a hope. Every holiday is an expectation that there will be an increase," he added.

Yusran assessed that this kind of reduction of leave was also inappropriate to do. According to him, the government should find a way to monitor people who really want to take a vacation. Moreover, so far the tourism sector, especially restaurants and hotels, have followed the health protocol rules in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moreover, currently many hotel and restaurant business actors have been affected and have forced many employees in this sector to lose their jobs.

"The government should carry out a supervisory function in the community. Because who carries out surveillance in the community? The government. Moreover, we don't know when this pandemic will end, so the most important thing is behavior change. This should be our reference for the implementation of 3M. (maintaining distance, using masks, and washing hands) is important. So all activities must be guided by that direction, "he said.

"So every time there is a holiday momentum, it is used as a trial for how this can work. There have been several holidays, so we should be able to learn which one is the problem, how to limit it so that it is not overloaded. it is affected every time there is an increase in COVID-19, "he concluded.