Two leading labor unions – the Confederation of Indonesian Prosperity Labor Union (KSBSI) and the Confederation of All-Indonesian Workers Union (KSPSI) –- on Thursday announced their full support for the presidential bid of Jakarta Governor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.
“We, the two leading worker unions, declare our support to Jokowi as a president. Jokowi will be able to show his extraordinary performance to fight for workers rights in the future,” said KSPSI president Andi Ghani in a declaration event in Matraman, East Jakarta, on Thursday, as quoted by kompas.com.
Andi went on to say that during his leadership of the capital, Jokowi had shown he supported workers rights. For example, he increased the provincial minimum wage by 40 percent in 2012. The wage hike, he said, had become a barometer for other regions.
Andi dared to predict that the joint declaration of the two worker unions, which have 21 unions nationwide under their umbrella, meant Jokowi would win the 2014 presidential election.
“We have calculated that there will be around 7 to 8 million labor votes for Jokowi. We are sure that Jokowi will win in only one round,” said Andi.
Nevertheless, the unions said, they would keep monitoring Jokowi’s work performance, especially regarding workers rights.
“We do not just support him but also will criticize him if during his leadership as president, he lacks attention to workers rights,” said KSBSI president Mudhofir.
Declarations of worker support for Jokowi are also planned for Banjarmasin, Batam, Cilegon, Lampung Medan, and other cities.
Source/Fuente: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/27/labor-unions-join-forces-s...
