Commission IX Of The House Of Representatives Asks The Government To Handle The Threat Of Mass Layoffs In The Hospital Sector

DPR-MPR Building. (Dino Januarsa-Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Member of Commission IX DPR RI, Arzeti Bilbina expressed concern about the increasing threat of layoffs (PHK) in the hotel sector. He asked the government to immediately take concrete steps to protect workers in the sector.

"The hotel sector is the backbone of the economy, especially in business and tourist areas. The threat of mass layoffs in this sector not only has an impact on workers, but also on the national economy," said Arzeti, Tuesday, June 10.

According to a survey by the Regional Leadership Agency of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association for the Special Region of Jakarta (BPD PHRI DK Jakarta), 96.7 percent of hotels in Jakarta experienced a decline in occupancy rates in the first quarter of 2025.

Meanwhile, 66.7 percent of respondents said the highest decline came from the government market segment, along with the budget tightening policy implemented by President Prabowo Subianto's administration.

As a result of the decline in occupancy rates, 70 percent of Jakarta hotel and restaurant entrepreneurs plan to make efficiency and termination of employment (PHK). It is estimated that hotel entrepreneurs will reduce 10-30 percent of the total number of employees.

Arzeti said that although the hotel sector has not been specifically recorded in the layoff data, the trend of increasing layoffs in the labor-intensive sector can be an early indicator of a similar threat in the hotel sector.

For this reason, the legislator from the East Java I electoral district emphasized the importance of the government to immediately carry out risk mapping and provide stimulus to the affected hotel industry.

"We urge the Ministry of Manpower and the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy to immediately form a special task force that focuses on preventing layoffs in the hotel sector. In addition, there needs to be a retraining program and skill improvement for affected workers," said Arzeti.

Arzeti also asked the government to be proactive and responsive in facing this challenge. The government, he said, should not lose momentum to protect workers.

"The government must maintain national economic stability," he concluded.

It is known, the wave of layoffs in Indonesia continues. According to data from the Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo), from January to February 2025, as many as 40,000 workers have experienced layoffs, with the highest concentration in DKI Jakarta, West Java, and Tangerang.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Manpower recorded that as of April 2025, the number of workers affected by layoffs reached 24,360 people or an average of 6,090 people per month.