Indef: Financial Resilience Becomes A Foundation So That Workers Can Be Comfortable And Continue To Be Productive

Illustration. (Photo: Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Executive Director of the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) Tauhid Ahmad stated that financial resilience is the foundation so that workers can be comfortable and continue to be productive.

"I think EWA (Earned Wage Access) is one of the possible solutions later so that workers are prosperous and much more comfortable," said Tauhid Ahmad in the webinar GajiGesa x INDEF - Market Survey: Earned Wage Access in Indonesia which was held virtually, quoted from Antara, Wednesday, March 1.

Good financial resilience conditions are beneficial for workers, especially in the midst of the current situation, especially for industries affected by the global recession.

In 2022, Indonesia's economic growth will reach 5.3 percent, but consumption economic growth is below 5 percent.

This fact shows that national consumption is lower than national economic growth, which means that there are extraordinary things that reduce domestic consumption rates.

"One of the factors that I think is the basis for why consumption falls in addition to increasing fuel and so on, is that workers do not have sufficient reserves of funds to meet their daily needs," said Tauhid.

Currently, the reserve funds of Indonesian workers are said to only reach the next 7 days based on the World Bank records. Access to financial institutions is also said to be very limited, especially for consumption credit and other things needed to maintain their lives.

Dalam perkembangannya, lanjut Direktur Eksekutif Indef, cadangan dana yang terbatas membuka ruang bagi para pinjaman ilegal atau pinjaman online (pinjol) maupun akses keuangan digital yang bisa masuk ke seluruh lini para pekerja dengan menawarkan berbagai kredit konsumsi.

The existence of illegal loans actually makes workers pay higher interest rates than consumption credit proposed by banks.

"I think with this situation, there needs to be a breakthrough, there needs to be a breakthrough on how innovation in the financial sector emerges, namely EWA," said Tauhid.

According to him, workers' financial resilience is important, especially in the midst of the current situation.

"I think we have revised the Job Creation Law, but what is more important is how workers can be more stable in doing their daily work," he said.