Regarding The Plan For Working Hour Regulations To Overcome Congestion, KSPI: It's Time To Build Mass Public Transportation

Chairman of the Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) Said Iqbal. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The DKI Jakarta Provincial Government will hold a public trial to regulate working hours.

This is done as an effort to reduce the number of congestion in the capital city, in addition to implementing odd-even traffic policies and traffic engineering.

Responding to the plan to regulate working hours in Jakarta, the President of the Labor Party who is also the President of the Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) Said Iqbal said this was not a matter of agreeing or not. But it is more about whether this policy will disrupt the business rhythm and social rhythm of workers, or not.

From the company side, said Iqbal, they have an obligation to deliver on time to send their products and services, especially those with export orientations.

Iqbal emphasized that the working hours of export destination countries are certainly different from working hours in Indonesia.

"For example, in Japan and Europe it is still early but in Indonesia it is already late. So the rhythm of factory operating hours and company administrative work will be disrupted," said Iqbal, in Jakarta, Tuesday, October 25.

Meanwhile, in terms of workers, said Iqbal, it is clearly very burdensome because the majority of workers in Jakarta are urban people who live outside Jakarta.

Most of them live in Bogor, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi (Bodetabek). So that the social rhythm and hours of sleep or rest must be disturbed.

"Those who are affected by working hours must leave early in the morning so they ignore the role of their children who have to go to school. And those who are affected by working hours a bit during the day must come home at night so that their sleep hours and their families can be disturbed," he said.

With a work rhythm like this, said Iqbal, in the end the productivity of workers will decrease.

According to him, it would be more effective if the government built mass transportation. Besides being able to overcome congestion, it can also increase worker productivity.

"It's time to build a mass public transportation system to increase workers' productivity and unravel congestion," he said.

Iqbal also asked all parties to be patient to wait for the DKI Regional Government to complete and expand the mass transportation system that is connected and integrated including Trans Jakarta, LRT, MRT, to cover the Jabodetabek area. He said the project was being carried out by the government.

"With any policy, traffic jams will still exist as long as the production of cars and motorcycles is not controlled by not being balanced with the development of road ratios and mass public transportation systems like what was done in Geneva Switzerland," he said.