PT Yihong PHK 1,126 Labor Strike
- JAKARTA – Teh Indonesian ministry of industry is investigating recent layoffs at PT Yihong Novatex, a footwear factory in Cirebon, West Java, after the company terminated the employment...
- Speaking at the Ministry of Economic Affairs office on Tuesday, Riza said, "We will discuss next week," when asked about the layoffs.
- Tho, Suryana, a worker at the factory, disputed this claim.
Cirebon Footwear Factory Hit by Layoffs Amid Labor Dispute
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JAKARTA – Teh Indonesian ministry of industry is investigating recent layoffs at PT Yihong Novatex, a footwear factory in Cirebon, West Java, after the company terminated the employment of 1,126 workers last month. Faisol Riza, Deputy Minister of Industry, stated that the ministry would address the issue next week.
Speaking at the Ministry of Economic Affairs office on Tuesday, Riza said, ”We will discuss next week,” when asked about the layoffs.
Conflicting Accounts Emerge Regarding layoff Cause
The company attributed the layoffs to a worker strike. Tho, Suryana, a worker at the factory, disputed this claim. According to Suryana, workers engaged in spontaneous actions from March 1-3 to protest the dismissal of three colleagues. He stated that the actions were not a strike and that employees continued to report for attendance despite a lack of production materials, according to Detikjabar.
Suryana further alleged that the layoffs were a pretext for the company to circumvent manpower laws. He also refuted the company’s claim that canceled orders prompted the layoffs, suggesting the company was using this as a tactic.
“There was no strike. We only carried out spontaneous actions on March 1-3 as a form of protest against the dismissal of our three colleagues unilaterally,” Suryana said. “Actually, at that time there was no production material, and we continued to perform attendance.”
Workers Protest Layoffs
The mass layoffs prompted workers to stage a demonstration in front of the Cirebon Regent’s Office on March 11, demanding justice for what they claim were unilateral dismissals.
Trend of Layoffs in Indonesian Footwear Industry
The layoffs at PT Yihong Novatex follow a trend of similar actions by manufacturers in the Indonesian footwear industry. Previously, PT Adis Dimension Footwear laid off 1,500 workers, and PT Victory Ching Luh Indonesia, a producer of Nike shoes, terminated the employment of 2,000 employees.
In February, PT Danbi International ceased production due to bankruptcy, resulting in the loss of jobs for approximately 2,079 workers.
Cirebon Footwear Factory Hit by Layoffs Amid Labor dispute: A Deep dive
What’s happening at the PT yihong Novatex footwear factory in Cirebon?
PT Yihong Novatex, a footwear factory located in Cirebon, West Java, recently laid off 1,126 workers. This action has prompted an inquiry by the Indonesian Ministry of Industry.The ministry stated they will address the issue the week following the layoffs.
Why did PT Yihong Novatex lay off so many workers?
The company claims the layoffs were due to a worker strike. However, a worker, Tho Suryana, disputes this. He states that workers engaged in “spontaneous actions” to protest the dismissal of three colleagues, but they were not a strike. Suryana also alleges the layoffs are a pretext and refutes the company’s claim of cancelled orders as the cause, suggesting this is used as a tactic.