Labor Party Protests Erratic Layoff by Instant Coffee Giant Subsidiary

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Labor Party together with the Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) has pushed PT Agel Langgeng – a subsidiary of instant coffee brand Kapal Api Global – to pay out the rights of its employees who were abruptly and arbitrarily laid off.

“The corporation closed down the factory located in Pasuruan as they claim it was needed to conduct efficiencies over financial losses,” Labor Party Said Iqbal explained in a press statement on April 12. 

According to him, the factory employees of the Kapal Api subsidiary were put on unpaid leave early in 2023 but the factory was no longer operable as the workers came back to work. “The machines that were used for production are no longer in the factory,” he said. 

Moreover, workers have reported that the production line machines were actually moved to another subsidiary allegedly located in Bekasi, West Java. 

"Ironically, in the closure, the company admitted that it suffered a loss and was only willing to pay severance pay of 0.5 terms to its workers," said Said Iqbal.

Whereas according to the workers, the company regulations for PT Agel Langgeng stipulate that workers should receive twice the severance if the company commits to layoffs due to efficiency. Said Iqbal explained that similar provisions were also regulated in the Manpower Law.

"On the other hand, this is evidence that the Job Creation Law has made it more miserable for workers because of the low severance pay. Initially, it was 2 times [the amount] to now that is only 0.5 times," said the General Chairperson of the KSPI.

"The Manpower Act stipulates that as long as the layoff process does not have permanent legal force, the company is obliged to pay wages and other rights that are normally received by employees," he said.

AMELIA RAHIMA SARI

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