PORTALJABAR, BANDUNG CITY - Acting Governor of West Java Bey Machmudin received representatives of workers who demonstrated in front of the West Java DPRD office, Jalan Diponegoro, Bandung City, Wednesday (20/4/2024).

Bey met the workers along with the Deputy Chairmen of the West Java DPRD, namely Oleh Soleh, Achmad Ru'yat, Ineu Purwadewi Sundari, and Abdul Harris Bobihoe, as well as heads of regional apparatus.

A total of five worker representatives were welcomed into the Commission V Meeting Room. The workers have been demonstrating since Monday (18/3/2024).

The demands submitted by workers are still the same as the demands submitted in November 2023.

Workers urge the Acting Governor of West Java to issue a Governor's Decree regarding the wage scale for workers with more than 1 year of service.

Workers feel that the 2024 Provincial Minimum Wage (UMP) and Regency/City Minimum Wage (UMK) which refer to Government Regulation Number 51 of 2023 do not fulfill a sense of justice.

The Acting Governor of West Java remains adamant that he will not issue a Gubernatorial Decree for workers who have worked for more than 1 year.

According to him, based on Government Regulation Number 36 of 2021, the Governor only has authority regarding the UMP.

Bey Machmudin himself, who was directly appointed by President Joko Widodo to carry out his duties as Acting Governor, has the status of a state civil servant (ASN) who must comply with binding regulations.

Bey appreciated the West Java DPRD and worker representatives who were willing to sit together to discuss and find solutions to existing problems.

"I appreciate the initiation of the West Java DPRD, this is a meeting of the West Java Provincial Government and the Workers' Union and this is our third meeting," said Bey Machmudin.

"I am an ASN and am bound by standard rules, and I still won't be able to issue a gubernatorial decree for workers for more than one year," stressed Bey.

Bey said that at this meeting there was a bright spot, in which the DPRD would then facilitate workers' demands by summoning the company for discussion.

Bey admitted that he would continue to fulfill the West Java DPRD's request to review the regulations.

"But to this day our position as Acting Governor of West Java will not issue a Governor's Decree for workers over one year old," he concluded.

Following up on the aspirations expressed by workers, Deputy Chairman of the West Java DPRD Achmad Ru'yat said that his party would immediately invite Kadin, Apindo or other employers' associations to a hearing with the workers' unions.

A meeting will later be held to find a middle way apart from the workers' demands.

"(Hearing opinions) To convey the hopes of fellow labor unions and the desires of employers' associations," he explained.

One worker representative, Ajat Sudrajat, said that the UMK set at the end of the year is only for workers of less than one year.

"In order to improve workers' welfare and improve the quality of life of the people of West Java," he said.