BPJS Employment Believes Tapera Has A Good Goal For Workers In Indonesia

BPJS Ketenagakerjaan Finance Director Asep Rahmat Suwandha. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The Employment Social Security Administering Agency (BPJS) believes that the Public Housing Savings (Tapera) program has a good goal for the welfare of workers in Indonesia and the government's policy has certainly gone through a study.

"From the side of the implementation agency, we believe that this policy certainly has a very good purpose for workers' welfare," said BPJS Ketenagakerjaan Finance Director Asep Rahmat Suwandha when met by the media in Jakarta, quoted from Antara, Monday, June 3.

Regarding the influence of the Tapera program on the number of participations and management funds of BPJS Ketenagakerjaan, Asep said that his party is currently unable to comment further considering that the policy is still relatively new. BPJS Employment also still requires further discussion with the Tapera Management Agency (BP).

"So far, we have been discussing how to participate. Tapera has participants, we also have participants, how to synchronize the benefits. So far, this is the new policy ( Tapera program)," he said.

BPJS Ketenagakerjaan itself provides an opportunity for participants to have housing through the benefits of additional services (MLT) for housing programs. This MLT, explained Asep, has been running for a long time as stipulated in Government Regulation (PP) Number 46 of 2015 concerning the Implementation of the Old Age Security Program (JHT).

This is also stated in the Regulation of the Minister of Manpower (Permenaker) Number 17 of 2021 concerning Amendments to the Regulation of the Minister of Manpower Number 35 of 2016 concerning Procedures for Providing, Requirements, and Types of Benefits of Additional Services.

Asep said that the Tapera and MLT programs have different concepts. Tapera is a temporary housing savings for MLT from BPJS Ketenagakerjaan is an additional program to expand benefits. Until now, said Asep, only about 4,000 participants have benefited from the MLT housing program.

There are four types of MLT that can be accessed by BPJS Ketenagakerjaan participants, including home ownership loans (KPR), housing down payment loans (PUMP), housing renovation loans (PRP), and construction worker housing/credit financing facilities (FPP/KK).

This (MLT) has been running. Since last year, we have collaborated with banks. So we have a subsidy trade from BPJS, then we cooperate with banks and distribute at least three (category). One, for housing a maximum of 500 million ceilings. Two, for renovation 200 million. Three, housing down payment 150 million," said Asep.

Based on the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN), Asep said that BPJS Ketenagakerjaan itself targets the number of active participants to increase to around 53.5 million and the position to date has reached around 40 million participants. In the future, BPJS Ketenagakerjaan will focus on membership, especially the non-wage recipient category (BPU).

Previously reported, the Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) rejected the implementation of Government Regulation (PP) Number 21 of 2024 concerning Amendments to Government Regulation Number 25 of 2020 concerning the Implementation of Tapera.

Chairman of Apindo Shinta Kamdani assessed that the PP, which was only ratified on May 20, 2024, duplicated the previous program, namely MLT housing workers for BP Jamsostek, participants in the Old Age Security (JHT) program.

"The additional burden for workers is 2.5 percent and employers is 0.5 percent of salaries (for the Tapera program) which are not needed because they can utilize funding sources from BPJS Ketenagakerjaan funds," said Shinta.

According to Apindo's view, the government should be expected to optimize BPJS Ketenagakerjaan funds more, where according to PP a maximum of 30 percent or Rp138 trillion, JHT assets of 460 trillion can be used for the MLT worker housing program.