Article
5
min read
Low Appreciation, High Discrimination
Writer
Vanessa
Published on
Hi Folks, information openness encourages human thinking to be more open. If previously women were not allowed to work because they had to be in the kitchen, today women can have careers and work outside the home.
In addition, there is also a trend ‘Househusband’ that has started to be heard in Indonesia. This further proves that human thinking is now more open and accepting of things that are different from before.
Read also: Discrimination in Job Advertisements
However, the gap and discrimination against workers based on gender still occur. Many companies or jobs still view women with disdain. Although these women work professionally, they are still rarely promoted or given raises as a form of appreciation. Added to that, the culture of patriarchy still strongly influences companies, resulting in a greater number of men than women in management structures.
By definition, gender discrimination is a condition where there is an imbalance and injustice in the social structure, which makes men and women victims of it. But it cannot be denied that gender discrimination is most vulnerable for women. This occurs because of deeply rooted beliefs in the social structure of society.
Forms of Gender Discrimination
Marginalization
The process, attitudes, and behaviors of society and even the state that lead to the exclusion of women. Example: Women are rarely promoted as branch heads or division heads because these positions are often held by men who are considered to possess stronger leadership characteristics compared to women.
Subordination
A belief that one gender is more important than the other. This causes the 'second-class' gender to be frequently exploited and their voices are rarely heard. Example: Jobs performed by women such as secretaries or kindergarten teachers are considered lower than jobs performed by men such as lecturers and soldiers, which causes the wages received by women to be lower as well.
Stereotypes
A negative label assigned to a particular gender. Example: Women should engage in household activities or domestic matters. Even though women work outside, they are still regarded with disdain because they are considered inferior and their income is comparatively small compared to men.
Double burden for women
A form of gender discrimination in households that is usually imposed on women. Example: Although many women are now working, when they return home, they still have to do housework. Meanwhile, men rarely help with household tasks, meaning that the burden on women can be considered greater.
Non-Friendly Companies for Women
Based on data from IBCWE (Indonesia Business Coalition for Women), IGCN (Indonesia Global Compact Network) and UN Women in 2017-2018 it shows that women in Indonesia have the lowest percentage of employment at 47.8% compared to other Asian countries like Vietnam, Thailand, and Singapore. Meanwhile, the percentage of men working in Indonesia reaches 79.5%. This data clarifies the existing gap between female and male workers.
Although women are given the opportunity to work, from about 50 companies that were the subject of research, only 10% of the companies are willing to promote women to board-level positions. Moreover, only 68% of companies provide lactation rooms, offer educational programs, and training for female employees aimed at improving their skills.
After discussing discrimination based on research from 50 companies, now let's try to expand the discussion to the national level. Here are three points that are evidence of gender discrimination in the workplace, particularly in Indonesia:
Maternity leave
ILO has established that maternity leave should be at least 126 days, but Indonesian Law No. 13/2003 on labor, Article 82, only allows women to take maternity leave for 90 days.
Wage gap between men and women
Although according to Indonesian Law No. 87/1957 which states that there should be equal wage payments across all genders at the same job levels. However, in reality, labor force surveys show that there is a wage gap, where women's wages are 30.8% lower than men's wages. This discrepancy widens when working in urban areas and in several public sectors.
Double standards
In Indonesia, there is still a mindset and belief that women are better off doing household activities and do not need to work outside like men generally do.
Gender Discrimination Policies in Indonesia
The issue of discrimination in companies is not new, but it has indeed been happening for a long time. Is the government trying to stay silent? No, the government is trying to regulate this in the law. According to Stonewall Global Workplace, general discrimination in employment is regulated in Law No. 13 of 2003, Articles 5 and 6.
This article states that gender discrimination is a violation. In the book Equality and non-discrimination in the workplace in Indonesia by Bill Salter (2012), it also discusses protection for women who are victims of gender discrimination, especially in the workplace.
In addition, there are regulations in Law No. 80 of 1957 and Convention No. 111, Article 1.(3); and Convention No. 111, Article 2(b) that discusses measures to eliminate discrimination in employment and positions that must be implemented at all existing levels, before, during, and after employment, including:
Access to education and guidance and vocational training
Access to jobs and utilization of employment services
Access to certain positions
Working conditions
Equal pay for work of equal value
Career development based on individual characteristics, experience, abilities, and perseverance
Job security
After retirement
It seems that the previous regulations are not sufficient to eliminate gender discrimination, particularly against women. So besides the laws mentioned above, Indonesia has affirmative actions as stated in Law No. 12 of 2003 regarding elections. This law also states that a 30% quota for women to participate in political parties is allowed. However, unfortunately, this is still in stark contrast in the workforce, leading many women to be undervalued and become victims of discrimination.
Hopefully, there will be fewer news stories about discrimination because our struggle is not over!
By: Vanessa
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Source:
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Buku Cho Nam Joo - Her Name Is…
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Salah satu alasan mengapa mereka enggan melapor adalah karena para korban (45,61%) merasa bahwa pihak Manajemen tidak akan melakukan apapun.
Angka-angka ini adalah alarm keras. Ketika mayoritas korban merasa lebih aman untuk diam daripada melapor, itu tandanya ada yang salah dengan sistem pendukung di tempat kerja tersebut.
Bukan tanpa alasan korban enggan bersuara. Sering kali, saat laporan dibuat, mekanisme internal perusahaan justru berfokus pada "menjaga reputasi" daripada "mencari keadilan".
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Mengapa Saksi Sering Memilih Diam?
Meskipun angka saksi ini sangat tinggi, kenyataannya ada banyak juga saksi yang memilih diam. Mengapa demikian?
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Takut dianggap terlalu ikut campur.
Keberanian Itu Bukan Fiksi
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Menjadi Saksi yang Berani Beraksi
Kamu juga bisa menjadi saksi yang berani beraksi. Tapi, sebelum itu, ada hal yang lebih penting untuk diutamakan, yakni keamanan dan keselamatan diri.
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Saat kejadian:
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Setelah kejadian:Tenangkan dan tanyakan keadaan korban.
Tawarkan bantuan pada korban.
Jadi saksi pada pelaporan ke atasan atau HR.
Gunakan hasil dokumentasi untuk bukti pelaporan.
Pantau perkembangan laporan.
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Just Pretend to Be Good: About the Well-being of Lecturers in Indonesia
Lecturers so far seem to have no problems, maybe it’s because we are in denial. We pretend to be okay. So it’s like (we need) awareness that we are not okay, awareness that something needs to change, awareness that we are the working class who are very likely to be oppressed in our work fulfillment relationships.” – Nabiyla Risfa Azzati, representative of the Lecturer Welfare Research Team (2023)
The teaching profession, which is considered promising, does not guarantee worker welfare. A survey from the Lecturer Welfare Team shows that there are still lecturers who are dissatisfied with their salaries. This research was released in commemoration of Labor Day and National Education Day 2023.
Survey by the Lecturer Welfare Research Team (UGM-UI-Unram, 2023) shows that 42.9% of lecturers earn below Rp3 million. About 35% of them feel that their monthly income does not match their workload and qualifications as lecturers. Moreover, nearly one-third of respondents reported spending monthly living costs of Rp3-5 million.
Not All Lecturers Live Prosperously
The representative of the Lecturer Welfare Research Team, Nabiyla Risfa Azzati, stated that this research shows the fact that many lecturers are not prosperous. The labor law lecturer at UGM noted that more than 40% of lecturers earning below Rp3 million is a red flag.
“This speaks about a profession that on one hand requires very high qualifications to enter, therefore its barrier is very high, while on the other hand, this profession also becomes the backbone of knowledge creation,” emphasized Nabiyla when met by the Never Okay Project (NOP) team.
Issues of Lecturer Welfare Rarely Discussed
Nabiyla revealed that the welfare of lecturers is rarely raised. This is why this research was conducted: to make this issue mainstream so that the parties concerned can be more open and acknowledge that there are problems.
“Because if we can acknowledge that there is a problem, we can start from there, we can look for solutions together. If we don’t even admit there’s a problem, it’s very difficult, right?” she said.
Nabiyla realizes that discussions about salaries are still considered taboo, especially for the teaching profession, which is considered noble and carries a certain social status. She also acknowledges that it is not difficult to find prosperous lecturers. However, that does not mean we should turn a blind eye to the 42.9% of respondents who earn less than Rp3 million.
“If my life is used as an example, lecturers are fine. But there are many other lecturers who are not okay,” she said.
Lecturers No Longer an Attractive Career Choice
The results of this research also seem to answer an assumption that being a lecturer is no longer an attractive choice. “How can we attract quality individuals to work in a profession that in its early stages cannot provide welfare. Like it’s impossible,” she said.
Nabiyla also mentioned the high resignation rate from CASN (Civil Service Candidates) lecturers. This indicates that something is wrong.
“This actually shows that there’s something wrong, we do not value people who actually want to dedicate their time to knowledge creation in Indonesia,” she explained.
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Ideal Salary Standards for Lecturers
Discussing ideal salaries for lecturers is quite complicated. This is because the benchmark for fair wages in Indonesia refers to the minimum wage, which in this context is the standard of Decent Living Needs (KHL). However, this context is considered less suitable when talking about lecturer salaries.
“Why? Because first, the barrier to becoming a lecturer is high, so this should be seen as a profession that should not be valued at bare minimum,” explained Nabiyla.
She compared it to other countries that generally do not value lecturer salaries at minimum wage. The reason is that lecturer salaries there are negotiated. In Indonesia, sector-based negotiations are nearly non-existent, so the Lecturer Welfare Research Team cannot answer how to provide an ideal standard for lecturers.
Comparing Lecturer Salaries with Neighboring Countries
The Lecturer Welfare Research Team attempted to compare lecturer salaries in Indonesia with comparable neighboring countries, namely Malaysia and Thailand. The results are quite shocking. The average lecturer salary in Malaysia is Rp 20-25 million and in Thailand is Rp 38-42 million. Nabiyla revealed that initially, the team felt those figures were not suitable for this job because they were too high. However, the main problem is that Indonesia does not have a standard for lecturer salaries.
“The comparison with Malaysia and Thailand should not be a very far comparison, but seeing that we currently do not have a standard, if we were to present at the Ministry of Education and Culture, we’d face ridicule. It’s strange how we don’t have standards; we are even afraid to mention a figure that isn’t too high at all, it’s actually quite normal,” said Nabiyla.
Lecturers are Workers Too: Fighting Not to be Oppressed
The survey results from the Lecturer Welfare Research Team also show that the lecturer profession is a labor profession. Therefore, it is necessary to fight to not be oppressed.
“Call us professional workers, call us white-collar workers, call us knowledge producers, whatever the name, at the end of the day, we are workers, we are laborers,” said Nabiyla.
Source:
Lecturer Welfare Research Team. (2023, May 4). How much do lecturers earn? Here are the results of the first national survey mapping the welfare of academics in Indonesia. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/berapa-gaji-dosen-berikut-hasil-survei-nasional-pertama-yang-memetakan-kesejahteraan-akademisi-di-indonesia-203854 accessed on May 21, 2023.
Interview with the representative of the Lecturer Welfare Research Team, Nabiyla Risfa Azzati. May 17, 2023.
Writer: Yanti Nainggolan
Editor: Imelda
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