Head Of Sritex Rejected By MA, PKB Legislator Urges Government To Prioritize Worker's Fate

PT Sritex di Kabupaten Sukoharjo, Jawa Tengah, beberapa waktu lalu. (ANTARA-Aris Wasita)

Member of Commission IX of the Indonesian House of Representatives from the PKB faction, Zainul Munasichin, urged the government to prioritize the fate of workers following the rejection of PT Sritex's cassation by the Supreme Court (MA).

According to Zainul, the government can immediately hold a dialogue with the curator appointed by the court so that PT Sritex continues to produce and prevent massive layoffs (PHK).

"The government cannot intervene in the decision of the Supreme Court. But the government can carry out dialogue policies with court curators and parties controlling the production process in Sritex regarding the future of workers," said Zainul Munasichin, Friday, December 27.

Zainul said the quick steps from the government would provide certainty for 50,000 Sritex employees who are threatened with layoffs because the company is bankrupt. "There are many workers who depend on PT Sritex," he said.

He also encouraged the Ombudsman and the Judicial Commission (KY) to re-examine the decisions issued from the district court to the Supreme Court regarding the bankruptcy case of PT Sritex. According to him, there were irregularities in the decision against the cassation submitted by PT Sritex.

"How is it possible that there are minority creditors whose loans (liabilities) are only 0.38 percent (Rp 100 billion) can generate a company. Meanwhile, the majority of the other 99 percent (Rp24 trillion) creditors stated that the company is healthy? This is really strange. We can easily guess what the motive is by looking at the creditor profile," he said.

Zainul emphasized that the government must hold a commitment not to lay off tens of thousands of PT Sritex workers. This is in accordance with the commitment that has been conveyed by the Minister of Industry (Menperin), Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, who promised that PT Sritex employees would not be laid off during a meeting with Commission VII of the DPR before the Supreme Court's decision occurred.

Zainul revealed that until now his party is still intensely communicating with the Ministry regarding the fate of PT Sritex workers.

"The company, even though it is declared bankrupt, still has to prioritize paying workers' rights. This is a priority before paying off debts," he said.

It is known that PT Sritex Group in Sukoharjo Regency, Central Java was declared bankrupt by the Semarang City Commercial Court on October 21, 2024.

It was recorded that four subsidiaries were sued for bankruptcy by PT Sritex in Sukoharjo, two factories in Semarang and the other in Boyolali Regency.

Then the company made an appeal to the Supreme Court for the cancellation of the bankruptcy decision but the Supreme Court rejected the appeal.