Jakarta – The Government of the Republic of Indonesia is preparing strategic steps to face the challenges of national employment by designing the formation of a Termination of Employment Task Force (Satgas PHK). This idea has received widespread support, not only from state officials, but also from economic experts and labor groups who are the spearhead of the nation’s productivity.
Minister of Manpower (Menaker), Yassierli, explained that the government is currently finalizing the draft for the formation of the PHK Task Force. According to him, this task force will not only focus on handling PHK cases, but will also be tasked with monitoring job creation and responding to other strategic employment issues.
“This PHK Task Force is expected to be a concrete instrument to navigate the dynamics of national employment, especially amidst uncertain global economic pressures,” said Yassierli.
This step has received a positive response from academics. Economic expert from Airlangga University (UNAIR), Prof. Rossanto Dwi Handoyo, SE, MSi, PhD, emphasized that layoffs should be the last resort taken in a crisis.
“Layoffs have huge economic, social, and political costs. The large number of unemployed can trigger other social problems such as crime. Therefore, the Layoff Task Force is important as a preventive measure,” explained Prof. Rossanto.
He also added that the government must be more active in listening to complaints from exporters and industry players so that employment policies become more adaptive and provide solutions.
No less important, strong support also came from labor unions. The General Chair of the Confederation of Indonesian Prosperous Labor Unions (KSBSI), Johannes Dartha Pakpahan, emphasized that the formation of the PHK Task Force was a concrete proposal from labor circles in responding to the threat of mass layoffs in the industrial sector, especially in Java.
“The PHK Task Force is not only reactive, but also proactive in anticipating, investigating, and handling the potential and impacts of PHK. This is a strategy to protect the rights and future of workers,” Johannes emphasized.
He estimated that at least 50 thousand workers were at risk of being laid off in the near future if there were no real steps from the government.
“This figure is likely to continue to increase if the practice of extreme global tariff setting is not stopped immediately,” he continued.
With cross-sector support, the formation of the Layoff Task Force is a new hope for the stability of the world of work in Indonesia and a real form of the state’s commitment to the fate of workers.
