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IDENTITY AND LABOR ACTIVISM OF TEN WOMEN FACTORY WORKERS IN A
LOW MILITANCY AREA, THE UJUNGBERUNG OF BANDUNG CITY,
WEST JAVA, INDONESIA
A Thesis
Presented to
the Faculty of the Graduate School
Ateneo de Manila University
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Master of Arts
by
Resmi Setia Milawati
2007
v
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................. iv LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................... x LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................... xii ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS USED .............................. xiii GLOSSARY................................................................................ xv Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION .................................................................. 1
Background of the Study ................................................. 1 Statement of the Problem ................................................ 5 Objectives of the Study.................................................... 7 Significance of the Study ................................................. 8 Scope and Limitations of the Study ................................. 8 Review of Related Literature ........................................... 9
Women in the industry ............................................... 9 Women and labor activism ......................................... 11 The concept of identity ............................................... 19 Identity and labor activism ......................................... 22
Analytical Framework ...................................................... 24 Research Methodology.................................................... 26
Research design ........................................................ 26
vi
Research site ............................................................. 27 Sources of data.......................................................... 29 Selection of key informants ........................................ 29 Data-gathering techniques ......................................... 31
Data Analysis ................................................................. 32 Thesis Organization ....................................................... 35
2. THE NATURE OF FACTORY WORK
IN THE UJUNGBERUNG AREA ........................................... 37
The Industrial Center of Ujungberung.............................. 37
Socioeconomic condition of the residents .................. 38 The characteristics of the industry ............................. 42
............................ 45 The issues of locals and migrants .............................. 47
................. 50
Cinambo Indah .......................................................... 51 Bunisari ...................................................................... 54
A Profile of the Tomenbo Indonesia Corporation ............. 58
Changes in ownership ............................................... 58 The market orientation ............................................... 60 Size of the workforce ................................................. 61 The labor recruitment ................................................. 62 Mode of entry ............................................................. 65
vii
Work hours ................................................................ 67 Wage and allowance scheme .................................... 69 Social benefits ........................................................... 74 The difference between female
and male workers ................................................. 75 The production process ............................................. 78 Labor activity.............................................................. 78
Summary ......................................................................... 80
3. THE NATURE OF LABOR ACTIVISM:
OVERT AND COVERT ACTIONS ........................................ 82
Labor Activism in Indonesia............................................. 82 The Nature of Labor Activism
in the Ujungberung Area ............................................ 86 Overt and Covert Actions in TIC ...................................... 93
Strike: An overt and organized action ........................ 93 Bipartite negotiation: A persuasive
mode of action...................................................... 100 Covert actions ............................................................ 104
SPN and Its Women Members ........................................ 107
Aims of the SPN ........................................................ 107 Members and financial support .................................. 108 Organizational structure ............................................ 110
on labor union ............ 113 Experiences that lead to labor activism ...................... 115
viii
Summary ......................................................................... 118 4. SOURCES OF IDENTITY THAT ENABLE AND
CONSTRAIN WOMEN .................... 121
The Ten Women Workers ............................................... 122
Demographic characteristics ...................................... 123 Household characteristics .......................................... 123 Economic background and reasons
for seeking factory employment............................ 125
Sources of Identity of Women Workers ........................... 128
The non-activists ........................................................ 129 The activists ............................................................... 136
Synthesis and Discussion................................................ 148
5. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND
RECOMMENDATIONS ......................................................... 153
Issues and Research Findings ........................................ 154
Subordination of women in the workplace.................. 155 Labor activism............................................................ 158 Sour ......................... 162
Conclusion ...................................................................... 166
Forms of labor activism .............................................. 166 Women w .......................................... 167 The dominant sources of identity ............................... 168
Recommendations .......................................................... 170
Practical recommendations ........................................ 171
ix
Issues for further studies............................................ 174
APPENDIX ................................................................................. 177 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................... 197
x
LIST OF TABLES Table Page
1. Type and Number of Key Informants, by Place of Origin and Ethnic Group............................... 31
2. Research Topics, Data Sets, Data Sources,
and Data-Gathering Techniques ................................ 33 3. Distribution of Occupations in Three Subdistricts ............ 41
4. The Characteristics of Industry in the
Ujungberung Area ...................................................... 44 5. Percentage Distribution of TIC Factory Workers,
by Educational Attainment ......................................... 63
6. Basic Wage Classification, by Work Grade ..................... 71 7. Work Period Allowance ................................................... 72 8. Profile of Ten Women Workers in TIC ............................. 74 9. The Differences between Female and
Male Workers in TIC .................................................. 76 10. Industrial Action (2001-2005) .......................................... 83 11. CLA Negotiations Results (2004-2006) ........................... 102 12. Advantages Gained by Activists and
Non-Activists in Labor Union ...................................... 115 13. Demographic Characteristics of the Informants ............... 124 14. Household Characteristics of the Informants ................... 125 15. Reasons for Seeking Factory Work ................................. 128
xi
Table Page
16. 2006) ....................... 156 17.
condition .................................................................... 173
xii
LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page
1. Analytical Framework ...................................................... 27 2. Map of Ujungberung Area, Bandung City ........................ 28
3. The Map of Bandung City ................................................ 51 4. The Map of Cinambo Indah ............................................. 52 5. The Map of Bunisari ........................................................ 54 6. Hierarchichal Structure of TIC ......................................... 78 7. The Production Process .................................................. 79 8. The Organizational Structure of SPN .............................. 110 9. The Relationship of Structure, Agency, and Social and Personal Context ...................................... 172
xiii
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS USED
ACILS American Center for International Labor Solidarity BTN Badan Tekstil Nasional, National Textile Body
CLA Collective Labor Agreement (Perjanjan Kerja Bersama)
DO Direct observation DPC Dewan Pimpinan Cabang (Branch Council
Leadership) DPD Dewan Pimpinan Daerah (Regional Council
Leadership) DPRD Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Daerah (Regional
Representative Council) F-1 Factory One F-2 Factory Two FGD Focus group discussion FSPSI Federasi Serikat Pekerja Seluruh Indonesia (All
Union Federation) Grantex Grand Textile Indonesia Corporation, a textile factory
established in the 1970s Jamsostek Jaminan Sosial Tenaga Kerja (Employee Social
Security and Insurance Guarantee) KASBI Kongres Aliansi Serikat Buruh Indonesia (The
KHL Kebutuhan Hidup Layak (Decent Subsistence Needs) KI Key informant
xiv
LAP Lawe Adya Prima (a spinning mill factory) NGO Nongovernment organization PA Perwakilan anggota
PKB Perjanjian Kerja Bersama (Collective Labor Agreement or CLA)
PLN Perusahaan Listrik Negara (State Electricity
Company) PMA Penanaman Modal Asing PMDN Penanaman Modal Dalam Negeri
PO Participant observation
PSP Pimpinan Serikat Pekerja (Trade union leadership at the enterprise level) RT Rukun Tetangga (Neighborhood) SDC Secondary data collection SPN Serikat Pekerja Nasional (National Trade Union)
SPSI Serikat Pekerja Seluruh Indonesia (All Indonesia
SPTSK Serikat Pekerja Tekstil Sandang Kulit (The Textile,
Cloth, and Leather Trade Union) SVS Sarana Vida Sejahtera TFG Textile, footwear, and garment THR Tunjangan Hari Raya (Lebaran Bonus)
TIC PT. Tomenbo Indonesia (Tomenbo Indonesia Corporation)
TMK Toyo Menka Kaisha TNR Tiga Negeri Raya
xv
GLOSSARY
Arisan. Rotating savings associations
Bandros. A sweet tidbit made of rice flour
Berbakti. Dutiful
Borongan. Piece-rate basis
Buruh tani. Farm hands or agricultural laborers
Caleg. Calon legislative, legislature candidate
Daek heug henteu kajeun. Take it or leave it
Dalam. Inside
Depan. Front
Dunia Fantasi. A game arena near Ancol, Beach, Jakarta
Halus. Refined
Harga diri. Dignity
Hina. Contemptible
Ibadah. Act of devotion to Allah
era
Jang Jawa. For Javanese
Jilbab/Kerudung. Veil
Jumatan. Males praying together for 30 minutes in the mosque every Friday
xvi
Karyawan depan. Front staffs
Kecamatan. Subdistrict
Kelompok arisan. Rotating savings associations
Kelurahan. Administrative village
Kepala regu-karu. Group or line leader
Kepala seksi-kasi. Supervisor
Keterbukaan. Opening up
Ketua Rukun Tetangga (RT). Neighborhood chiefs
Ketua Rukun Warga (RW). Subhamlet head
Koperasi. Cooperative
Kredit barang. Goods credit
Lebaran. Feast celebrating the end of fasting period.
Lurah. Village headman
Makelar tanah. Land brokers
Pahala. Merit
Palawija. Secondary crops after paddy such as corn, cassava, and soybean following rice paddy
Penghinaan. Insult
Perantara. Agent
Perantauan. Foreign area
xvii
Purnawirawan. Retired army officers Ronda. Night activity where males work in groups and roam the community
until early morning to guard the community from thieves and other disturbances
Rujak colek. Peanut-sauced fruit salad
Sopan santun. Personal reserve and refinement
Tabur bunga. Scattered flowers
Universitas Terbuka. Open University
Usaha kecil-kecilan. Small business
Warung. Small shops
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
In Southeast Asia, the rate of female participation in the urban workforce has
remained steadily high over the past decades. Most major Southeast Asian countries
reported, for instance, that the percentage of women in the urban workforce
increased on the average by 10-15 percent in the decades 1970-1980 (Brydon and
Chant 1989, 163), and continued at a similar pace until the 1980-1990 period
(Ghosh 2004, 18; Metcalfe 2004, 29). The growth of the female workforce in
Singapore and Indonesia, in particular, has been substantial, hovering at around 20
percent during the three-decade period from 1970 to 2000 (Metcalfe 2004, 30).
These figures demonstrate the greater involvement of women in the Southeast Asian
labor force during the latter half of the 20th century and have placed women as
important actors in the process of industrialization in the region (Horton 1996).
Light export industries in Asia such as textiles, garments, and electronics rely
heavily on young and relatively unskilled women factory workers for manpower (ibid.;
Kim 1996). In these low-wage, low-status, and low-security manufacturing jobs
women workers usually make up the majority of the employees. This situation
coincides with the shift of manufacturing production from developed countries to
developing countries which provide cheap and abundant labor (Kim 1996; Safa
1981). Such is the Indonesian situation:
2
Large scale, factory-based export production has, in general, meant a distinct feminization of the industrial workforce. Thus, for example, garment factories actually released male sewing-machine operators and took on new female workers as they shifted to export production. (White 1993, 132 cited in Silvey 2003, 134)
The preference of employers for female workers is due to local and foreign
relative docility (Hadiz 1997; Kim 1996; Mather 1983 and Lok 1993 cited in Silvey
2003, 134-135; Safa
manual dexterity, compliance with authority, and patience for monotonous work have
been challenged by those who argue that these views vary across places and within
groups of women in these places (Porpora, Lim, and Prommas 1989 cited in Silvey
2003, 135; Wolf 1999).
In Thailand, for example, women workers are more militant than their male
counterparts (Mills 2005; Porpora, Lim, and Prommas 1989 cited in Silvey 2003). In
the 1990s, meanwhile, industrial life in Tangerang area, Indonesia was dominated by
strikes and demonstrations where women stood at the forefront of labor activism
(Hadiz 1997). In 1991, 70 percent of all strikes in Indonesia took place in the Jakarta
-migrant, o
2003, 136) and labor unrests concentrated in the garment, textile, and footwear
active and outspoken than their male counterpar
played central roles in strikes were not only women, but also migrant women (Silvey
3
2003, 136). Thus, in contemporary labor relations in Indonesia, women workers, and
in particular migrant workers, are far from docile (Andriyani 1996; Hadiz 1997).
However, the relation between women and labor activism is far from simple.
places and within
groups of women in these places (Silvey 2003). Elmhirst (2004) has also found, for
example, that despite the labor activism of migrant women in Tangerang during the
1990s, young female migrant workers from Lampung, another Indonesian city,
1
Since Jakarta, Tangerang, Bekasi, and Rancaekek are marked by the
increasing flow of a female migrant workforce from outside the province and indeed
from outside Java itself, it is not surprising that some studies have also shown the
connection between gender and ethnicity in labor activism (Elmhirst 2004; Saptari
roles of being a responsible daughter and maintaining ties with rural kin and peers
married women seem to be less militant than single women.
1Bekasi and Rancaekek are in West Java. Bekasi city lies within the Jabotabek
area and Rancaekek is just outside the city of Bandung.
4
cited in Elmhirst 2004) study on migrant social networks in a South Sulawesi
industrial area reveals, for example, that the ability to fall back on parental
contributions of rice an indicator of family ties meant that women are able to risk
ng shows that
financial support from family enables workers to engage in a long period of strike.
They use these funds to retain rented lodgings and to buy food.
On a broader conceptual level, gender, ethnicity, marital status, and social
networks can be s
for labor activism. Therefore, an understanding of
identity among women workers, which includes their reasons for getting involved (or
uninvolved) in labor activism, is very important in assessing the growing militancy of
women workers in factories.
Identities are explained in context, one of which is the condition of the labor
market. In Indonesia, for example, the prolonged economic crises that destroyed
many local and foreign investments have also contributed to an increase in
unemployment rates (Muhamad 2002). In 2003, the rate of unemployment went
beyond 10 percent of Indonesian workforces or around 10.13 million people
(Bappenas, 2003 cited in Bisnis Indonesia, 30 September 2003). Within a context of
5
high unemployment, jobs are hard to get and to maintain. To some extent this
condition discourages labor protests, as workers will tend to be more compliant with
as state labor policies, the changing politics of labor organizing, and strong labor
unions and NGOs appear to contribute to the growth of militancy among workers
(Ford 2003; Hadiz 1997). Thus, despite the unstable labor market, many workers still
olicy to enable
them to get a higher bargaining position in the workplace. This also suggests that
identity as a labor protester can change depending on the situation. Even within
ople reshape
Holborn 2004, 821), in this case, through collective action. The following section
explains the problem of this study.
Statement of the Problem
Many studies cite macro-level factors such as state labor policies, the
changing politics of labor organizing, and the role of trade unions and NGOs for
causing militant protest. However, a few studies focus on the wo
identity as key elements in determining labor activism among women workers. Thus,
this study seeks to learn how sources of identity, some ascribed and others
non-activists.
6
The understanding of a particular industrial area or context is also important
since the militancy of women workers varies across areas and within groups of
women in these areas. Previous studies on labor militancy among women workers in
Indonesia were made in the Jabotabek2 area, known as a seat of labor unrest. Only
a few studies focused on areas that lack such militancy (Silvey 2003), as indicated
by the number of strikes per year, the number of people who were involved in the
activism in one factory in the Ujungberung Area, Bandung City, which is an area that
has the least overt militancy. This study argues that structural constraints that are
more pronounced in a low militancy area are not enough to explain the variation in
the degree of militancy among women workers. Even within structural constraints,
some women workers can shape their identities as labor activists through taking
collective and individual actions. They also reshape, to some extent, social
structures that limit them (Woodward 2000). Therefore, to understand women
the women themselves, particularly their sources of identity, which may promote or
constrain their involvement in labor activism.
The Ujungberung area is also colored by an influx of migrants from areas
within and outside Java Island who belong to various ethnic groups. Many studies
have viewed women workers as a homogenous category despite their varying ethnic
backgrounds and places of origin. This study focuses on female migrant and non-
2Jabotabek stands for Jakarta, Bogor, Tangerang, Bekasi City.
7
migrant workers from Sundanese and non-Sundanese ethnic groups. Specifically,
this research attempts to answer the following questions:
1. What are the forms of labor activism in an area with a relatively low level
of militancy?
2. What sources of identity are important in understanding the women
3.
Objectives of the Study
In general, the research aims to examine the relation between sources of
identity and labor activism among women factory workers in a low-level militancy
industrial area. Specifically, the research attempts to:
1. describe the nature of labor activism in the Ujungberung area, Bandung
City, an area that lacks militancy compared to other industrial centers in
West Java;
2. describe the forms of labor activism in a factory where a substantial
percent of its workers are women;
3. as factory workers;
4. identify the dominant sources of identity that influence their decision to
engage (or not engage) in labor activism;
5. identify various conditions in which women wo
mobilized; and
8
6. make a recommendation for i
factories.
Significance of the Study
The study is an attempt to provide a better understanding of the origins of
labor activism, specifically on how sources of identity lead women workers into a
certain kind of militancy. The use of the concept of identity enables us to understand
and explain the reasons why women workers participate actively (or inactively) in
labor activism, particularly in a low-level militancy area where its social structure
useful for labor unions, specifically those whose members are mostly women, in their
quest to improve their labor-organizing strategies. The research is also an attempt to
contribute to the literature on women labor studies, specifically by showing how
Scope and Limitations of the Study
The study covers only one trade union at the enterprise level in the industrial
center of Ujungberung area in the city of Bandung of West Java, Indonesia. The
study also limits its investigation to female workers in one factory. Moreover, since
the study focuses on sources of identity, other factors related to labor activism such
as the role of labor unions and state labor policy will only receive minimal attention.
9
Review of Related Literature
The next section present
These are followed by a discussion of the concept of identity and the link between
identity and labor activism among women workers.
Women in the industry
Various attempts to explain wome have
focused their role in the family and the associated patriarchal ideology (Beechey
1979 cited in Saptari 2000; Eviota 1992, 15). In general, industries do not favor a
female workforce because their domestic roles often impede their ability to take a
certain job. This tendency is consistent with the notion of female marginalization,
where women are excluded from certain types of production because of domestic
obligations (Brydon and Chant 1989, 168). As a result, women are left to enter
-intensive industries such as textile production, garment
making, food processing, and assembly electronics (Brydon and Chant 1989; Hadiz
1997; Kim 1996; Safa 1981; Wolf 1999). In Mexico, for instance, one-third of women
industrial workers are employed in the clothing trade, and a further fifth in the food
industry (LACWE 1980 cited in Brydon and Chant 1989, 169).
The feminization of workforces in low-skilled jobs and labor-intensive
industries relates to several factors. One factor is related to decision making by
management that usually reverts to sex stereotypes of women as having patience
10
for tedious jobs, nimble fingers, and visual acuity,
domestic roles impinge upon their ability to take on certain jobs, especially those that
require overtime. However, a far more adequate explanation lies in the higher profit
that can be extracted from female labor owing to low wages (Brydon and Chant
1989; Elson and Person 1981 cited in Safa 1981; Eviota 1986; Lee 1993; Kim 1996).
Furthermore, gender-segregated job allocation necessarily produces gender
hierarchy in authority relations (Lee 1993, 513). All women are under the authority of
male supervisors and managers. In their superordinate roles, men demand high
productivity and control women production workers. Thus, women workers are
subjected to patriarchal domination as well as capitalist domination (ibid., 513-514).
In ad hile women and men are both displaced
in times of recessions and crises...it has been largely the case that women are
relatively more expendable either because they are in positions which are lower
during capitalist expansion, the women workforce laid off is usually replaced by
younger women (ibid.). It is not the case for men, as those who are laid off are
generally rehired.
The light-manufacturing industries generally prefer young, single women with
no previous work experience rather than experienced workers who command higher
firms prefer young single females because they are cheaper to hire than married
ones. In turn, older, married workers are displaced even during periods of full
11
employment (Wong 1986, 213). The reasons for this preference vary, but generally
younger women are considered to be more docile and more productive, that is, more
committed to a strong work ethic than older women. Older workers are also more
likely to be married and burdened with family duties (Safa 1981, 429). The
commitment of a married woman to her husband, particularly to her children, tends
to disrupt a steady work attendance.
-560) study in South Korea shows that only big
companies prefer single women. Lower paying industries such as garment and shoe
factories employ significant numbers of married women workers. At least two
advantages accrue to the company by employing married women: married women
do not change jobs easily and they do not complain about overtime work. In fact,
since they come to work primarily to earn money, they welcome overtime (ibid.).
These reasons are often interrelated and have differing degrees of
applicability in different situations. As Scott (1986, 673 cited in Brydon and Chant
1989, 171) notes:
Gender plays a role in structuring labour markets, not just as cheap labor, but as subordinate labour, docile labour, immobile labour, sexual labour and so on. Thus it is not just dimensions of marginalization that need to be distinguished, but dimensions of gender. The use made of these different aspects by employers extends far beyond pressure on wage.
Women and labor activism
A remarkable feature of contemporary labor activism among factory workers
in Indonesia has been the increasing militancy of women workers (Hadiz 1997;
12
Saptari 1995). This surge of labor activism over the past few years comes
employment (Walby 1997). However, the relation between women workers and labor
activism is problematic. Some studies of women factory workers have focused on
the lack of it) and different
-based priorities, both economic and sociocultural (Elmhirst 2004;
Rowbotham 1972 cited in Berger 1983; Rutten 2000; Wolf 1990). The interaction
interests are among the most significant factors that intersect with, and shape, their
subjectivities as workers (Elmhirst 2004; Wolf 1999) and contributes to the
explains that parental influence and a desire to b
become im
Central Java. Meanwhile, other studies have shown that older women are unwilling
to engage in labor activism because it can jeopardize their family income
(Tjandraningsih 1995; Kim 1996; Symth and Grijns 1997). Rowbotham (1972 cited in
reproduction and consumption within the family mediated her relationship to
commodity production, thereby making women less liable to
13
rkers from North
Lampung shows that:
A heightened sense of cultural difference among Lampung women in the context of economic crisis is being forged through practices associated with the maintenance of ties with their rural kin and peers. This has had the effect of drawing these women away from wider network of labor activists, and has cemented a sense of their distinctly Lampung identity in ways that appear to undermine solidarity with fellow workers.
However, Elmhirst suggests that this process should not be interpreted as
representing a lack of female agency or unformed worker consciousness among
multifarious, fractured and contradictory, and all of which have potential implications
sense of common origin, common identity, and difference of migrant Lampung
women workers from other workers does not appear to subside, even after a period
of several months in Tangerang (2004, 396). Elmhirst also points out the significance
the social groups or associations in which factory
workers participate and the inter-household community networks in and around
factory areas in sh
importance of settings upon which women are able to express their militancy as
workers.
As mentioned above social, networks as well as gender and ethnicity also
play important roles in shaping w
social networks, as Massey and other authors define (1993, 448 cited in Silvey 2003,
14
-
migrants in origin and destination areas through the bonds of kinship, friendship and
characteristics such as family members, neighbors, close friends, and work
demographic characteristics and usually formed in associations or organizations
(Gittel and Vidal 1998 cited in Grootaert et al. 2004, 4; Narayan 2002; and Woolcock
2002 cited in Abad 2006). Furthermore, the idea of bonding social capital is
ties 3 (Abad 2006).
Only a few labor studies have focused deeply on social networks as factors in
labor activism (Elmhirst 2004; Silvey 2003). This is unfortunate since social networks
may both constrain and enable participation in labor activism. In other words, social
networks may ensure the attainment of jobs and discourage labor activism. Social
Elmhirst 2004, 38) as kin-based networks may also place certain moral restrictions
to the movement of particularly young unmarried women (ibid.). In this instance,
strong ties deter labor activism. In contrast, following Put (1973) and
3 gh levels of
in Abad 2006).
15
are more critical than intense
personal ties in sustaining collective action (cited in Ahn and Ostrom 2003, xxii).
common origin, common kinship, and language is a basis for people to define
themselves or others as members of a particular ethnic group. It confers a distinctive
social identity (Elmhirst 2004; Macionis 2003).
unrest in Indonesia, for example, has taken place in the industrial areas of the so-
called Jabotabek area in West Java, Indonesia, the site of the greatest concentration
of export-oriented factories (Hadiz 1997). As there has been a gradual spread of
export-oriented production to new locations, there has also been a correspondingly
wider geographical spread of industrial unrest (ibid.). Silvey (2003), for instance,
shows that while labor unrest has occurred in the Rancaekek region of West Java,
also an industrial center, the level of unrest in this area is lower compared to that in
the Jabotabek area. The reason, Silvey points out, is that people in Rancaekek are
dominated by the Sundanese, who are relatively embedded in local, family-based
social relations, while in Bekasi (part of J
exchange networks are more spatially extensive. According to Silvey (2003, 147),
people in Sunda emphasized the importance of these local, family-based networks in
terms of their gender ideologies and these networks we
Thus, networks appear to have a distinctive influence in labor activism.
16
The Ujungberung area in Bandung City shares similar characteristics with the
Rancaekek region in that both places have low levels of labor unrest compared to
the levels found in other industrial centers such as the Jabotabek area. Bandung
City is dominated by Sundanese culture. Here, migrants are encouraged to adjust to
the local culture (Bruner 1974). Failure to do so means that the migrants will be
either spur or
One type of adjustment is the operating restriction on female behavior.
West Java shows that male religious
leaders who act as labor agents have been successful in exercising both the
authority of their gender and that of the formal ideology to secure a docile and
submissive labor force, especially women. In her study, patriarchal values
subordinating women and youngsters are promoted through mosques, prayer
houses, schools, and other institutions with reference to Islamic scriptures and
practices. These values have also been able to domesticate young female migrants
who tend to be more outspoken than their local counterparts.
Some migrants also understand how being bonded to a labor agent restrains
describes a similar situation. Here the local authorities pay more attention to female
migrant workers, especially young unmarried women, in terms of their relations with
the source of labor in the factory near the community. The controls that factory
17
management imposes on the women workers occur beyond the workplace in order
local authorities to do the controlling, and the local authorities
justify their actions
decision to engage in labor activism.
In this research, labor activism is understood as actions by a worker (or
workers) to resist unfair treatment and unsafe industrial regulations, and to protect
and to improve working and living conditions. This definition is inspired by the early
definition of Rutten (2000) in her study about activism in a Philippine plantation
sensible strategy to defend and improve the
income and living conditions of their households, as they sought to raise wages,
).
The forms of labor activism will be distinguished into overt, organized, and
often large-scale resistance (e.g., participation in strikes, demonstrations4) and the
daily, o
1995, 213). This broader coverage of labor activism is parallel with longstanding
feminist efforts to redefine politics, which traditionally have been stressed as limited
4A strike is defined as a collective work stoppage in a single enterprise in pursuit
of common goals (Kemman 1997 cited in Perry 2005, 4). A demonstration is defined as a collective protest that often takes place in public spaces such as the center of government.
18
to the realm of formal organizations such as trade unions and on big events like
strikes (Andriyani 1996).
The idea that activism is part of a household strategy suggests that collective
action is only one option that a woman worker may consider. Finding out why and
when women workers do opt for activism and the way they combine it with other
types of action may give further insight into the considerations that motivate or
constrain it (ibid.). Within the context of labor market instability the workers will not
easily endanger their jobs unless the high costs they incur are matched by high
rewards (Popkin 1972 cited in Rutten 2000). The workers are more liable to engage
in labor activism that will not jeopardize their sole source of income. In addition,
participation in overt labor activism requires contributions in money, goods, and
and these costs may set the limits to labor activism (Rutten 2000, 217). Therefore,
labor activism also entails the need for survival.
This study is an attempt to provide a better appreciation of women factory
s decision to
be a labor activist or a non-activist. Some researches have focused on how identities
Only a few of these studies, however, deal in-depth with the situation of women
19
The concept of identity
As mentioned earlier, the concept of identity is important in understanding the
degree of militancy among women migrant factory workers. It can be used to
understand women workers themselves and their community. Furthermore, through
sources of identity, th
decision to be active or non-active labor protesters. What is identity? How will it be
used in this study?
Identity is a part of a persona or self-concept. Through social interaction
identities are formed, maintained, and changed (Charon 1998, 161). Thus, identities
are highly responsive to the social context (Burke 1980 cited in Hogg, Terry and
White 1995, 265). Moreover, Peter Burke (1980, 18 cited in Charon 1998, 87) points
out that identities are not only relational or social placed in a context of interaction
1998).
According to H
that he or she belongs to a social category or group (1988 cited in Stets and Burke
2000, 225). This definition parallels the one offered by Gregory Stone, who
social location of the individual: where one is
l ourselves, and usually it is the name we
20
not by all others, but by the reference groups and significant others5 of the individual
(Charon 1998, 87). Moreover, the concept of identity allows people to understand
their environment, and it enables people to understand themselves in the
environment (ibid., 86).
There are different types of identities,6 some of which are important and
central to the individual; others are not very important and are easily changed (ibid.,
88). Recall that identities are the way we identify and present ourselves in situations
make him
like or unlike others (1963 cited in Robbins 1973, 1206). These relevant features
comprise identity dimensions such as age, sex, ethnic group membership, social
rank (executive, laborer), and so on (Wallace 1967 cited in Robbins 1973, 1206). In
sum, not all identities matter. However, some may matter almost all the time.
Identities matter in what people do and in what people try to communicate to others
(Charon 1998, 161).
as fairly stable, as widely shared within social groups, and as based upon one or two
5 ividuals who are
important in our self- 6Stone distinguishes three types of identity. The first type is basic such as age
and sex. The second is general, such as priest or father. The third is independent, such as part-time employee (cited in Charon 1998, 88).
21
key variables
(ibid.). As Hall
tory or unresolved,
n identities. People
identities are relatively fluid.
Meanwhile, Kath Woodward introduces a more integrated analysis of identity.
She addresses the importance of structures as well as individual choice in asserting
adopting identities that they would like to have because of structural constraints.
However, she also acknowledges that even within structural constraints, some
people are still able to assert their identities and reshape the social structures that
restrict them (2000 cited in Haralambos and Holborn 2004, 819-821). Moreover,
Woodward also stresses that gender is important in understanding identity. She
which places constraints on individual choices. hile
gender is a crucial source of identity, its interactions with other sources of identity
are very important (1997 cited in Haralambos and Holborn 2004, 829).
22
something formed thr
women workers participation in labor activism and the ways they challenge and
reshape social structures that restrict them. In this study, gender, a crucial source of
identity, is seen in its interactions with a variety of other identity sources such as
ethnicity, age, marital status, and social networks. Therefore, this concept is
instrumental in examining the degree of militancy among women factory workers.
Identity and labor activism
Ethnicity, age, and gender are very central to the identity of individuals.
- or ascribed identities, identities that
individuals cannot choose to reject because they were born into them. These
(Elmihirst 2004; Silvey 2003). Another source of ascribed identity is family social
networks or those sets of ties women workers have with kin in a community where
they live (or at a place of destination and origin for migrants). Note that although
these sources of identity are ascribed, their expression or practice will be shaped
social networks are ascribed in the sense that blood ties are given, but these are
achieved in the sense that strong ties need to be worked at.
23
In addition, another source of identity is marital status, which is a type that
one acquires in the context of social interaction. This source of identity for a woman
worker is achieved rather than ascribed. Some studies have shown the connection
between marital s
instance, shows that companies prefer to employ young single women than older
and married women. Older and married women are usually hired in lower-paying
industries and subcontracting factories and paid less than younger women.
The lives of married women workers embodied an uncomfortable series of contradictions. They worked because their families had a real financial need for their income. On the one hand, they were overwhelmed with guilt for failing to meet the social expectations of being fulltime wives and mothers. At the same time they experienced severe discrimination in the workforce. (Kim 1996, 563)
These contradictions reveal the complicated relation between married women
workers and labor activism. Therefore marital status has become an important
All these factors are interrelated in a very dynamic way (Elmhirst 2004,
Saptari 1995, Silvey 2003, Smyth and Grijns 1997, Wolf 1999) as social identities
are formed, maintained, and changed in the process of social interaction (Charon
1998, 161). This process focuses on female workers acting in the context of social
structures, such as being a mother or daughter, and so on. Out of the interaction
inconsequential, while others are all-pervasive and life- (Hekman 1999, 22).
24
-
incompatible with the identity as father and husband. His role as breadwinner and
pressures from the family (wife and mother-in-law) force him to move away from
labor activism so he will not jeopardize his access to much-needed family income
among women workers, can be a basis to explain the sustainability of labor
movement, since women have played an important role in labor activism.
In the context of working in the factory, some of these identities assert
themselves. These asserted identities are said to affect labor activism. According to
mine the likelihood that an identity will be
activated across many situations, researchers must consider factors such as the fit
of identity to the situation (the stimuli present in the situation that fit the
characteristics of the identity) as well as the
Analytical Framework
In this study, the formation of identity involves both agency and social
structure (Woodward 2000). Social structures are seen as the set of arrangements
prevailing in the family, community, and factory condition as a whole that both
enable and constrain labor activism (Giddens 1984, 169 cited in Wolf 1990, 46).
In the context of labor activism in Indonesia, structures of gender are seen as
one of the important structural constraints that prevent women workers from
25
adopting their identities as labor activists. Nevertheless, some women workers
shape their social structures and reconstruct their own identities which allow them to
participate in labor activism (Woodward 2000). In this study, structures of gender are
analyzed through their connections with other sources of identity such as ethnicity,
age, marital status, migration status, and social networks. Although these sources of
identity can be analyzed separately, in practice they interact with each other in a
workers (Bradley 1997 cited in Haralambos and Holborn 2004; Elmhirst 2004).
Labor activism, in turn, is defined as actions by a worker (or workers) to resist
unfair treatment and unsafe industrial regulations, to protect and to improve working
and living conditions (Rutten 2000). Labor activism can be seen through actual
involvement in overt, organized, and often large-scale actions such as stoppage or
non-stoppage strikes, demonstrations, and dialogues or collective negotiations with
employers. The daily or covert forms of action are also taken into consideration as
part of labor activism (Saptari 1995, 213; Andriyani 1996). It is indicated by the acts
of slowdown, avoidance, gossip, and the like. Using an index of these factors, the
study classifies a female worker as activist and non-activist in terms of the degree of
participation in the labor union and the factory floor. Being active in the labor union
can be seen through participation in union and employer meetings, labor training
seminars, demonstrations, and strikes in the past year. Being active on the factory
floor, meanwhile, can be seen through asserting production problems to immediate
26
supervisors, and talking about workplace-based issues with fellow workers,
accompanied by gossip, slowdown, and avoidance actions (Andriyani 1996).
Labor activism in this study transcends its standard definitions which often
stress strategies such as confrontation and violent action, failing to take into account
the more collaborative strategies of dialogue, accommodation, and persuasion to
assert the interests and needs of workers without jeopardizing their livelihood and
production process in the factory.
The following analytical framework (see figure 1) provides the basis for
analysis and interpretation. It consists of three main points that are important to the
formation of identity of women factory workers, namely: social structure, individual
agency, and sources of identity. Familiarity with the social structure will help explain
the context in which sources of identity (both ascribed and achieved) are embedded.
Research Methodology
es of
data, selection of key informants, data-gathering techniques, and data analysis.
Research design
A descriptive case study design is applied in this research. It seeks to find out
how sources of identity that are embedded in social structures trigger women factory
workers to get involved (or uninvolved) in labor activism in a low-level militancy area.
27
Research site
The study was conducted in a Japanese-owned spinning mill in the
Ujungberung area, the city of Bandung in the West Java province, Indonesia (see
figure 2). The factory was chosen not because of its nature of ownership (Japanese
ownership) but for other reasons. First, it is dominated by female workers who are
the subject of this study. And second, these women workers have a relatively higher
level of participation in labor union activities compared to other factories in the
Ujungberung area.
FIGURE 1
ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK
Individual agency
The formation of women
identities
The degree of involvement in labor
activism (highly active or less active
labor protesters)
Structures of gender in factory, family, and community, including labor union Sources of
identity: Ascribed Age, ethnicity Achieved marital status, migration status Both gender roles, social networks
28
Ujungberung has been purposively selected owing to several considerations.
First, it is one of the centers of the garment and textile industry in West Java that is
known as a low-level militancy area. It is also the destination of choice for migrant
workers from various regions in Indonesia, particularly migrants from West Java,
Sumatra, Central Java, and East Java (Bruner 1974). Moreover, because the
Sundanese culture is very prominent in Bandung, migrants, especially those who
belong to non-Sundanese ethnic groups, are expected to adjust to the local culture.
FIGURE 2
MAP OF UJUNGBERUNG AREA, BANDUNG CITY
29
Sources of data
Data were collected from four sources: key informants (KIs), written
documents, participant observation, and focus group discussion (FGD). The KIs
s in the factory and in the
community, their perception of labor activism and factors that underlie their decision
to engage (or not engage) in strikes and demonstrations, labor trainings, and so on.
Data on population, industrial, and ethnicity characteristics were collected through
written documents and completed with interviews with the elders of the community,
subdistrict, and village administrative officers and the factory managers. Participant
observation was conducted to get a better picture of the fe
and their position in labor union and labor activism. The researcher participated in
two annual minimum wage increase strikes held in the center of province
government and the Bandung City Hall, union meetings, and a public hearing on
education issues initiated by Serikat Pekerja Nasional (SPN) in order to get the
workplace.
Selection of key informants
The KIs consist of women workers from three ethnic backgrounds
(Sundanese, Javanese, and Batak) in the 25-44 age range7 who work in a
7In 1990 and 2000, there was a higher female participation rate in the 20-24 and
25-44 age ranges (Metcalfe 2004, 33).
30
Japanese-owned spinning mill; male workers; labor organizers; the factory
managers; the elders of community; a subdistrict officer; and the village headman.
Interviews with factory workers from various factories in the Ujungberung area
completed the data. These informants were chosen to provide comprehensive
information about the nature of social relations in the community, industrial
conditions, and labor activism in the Ujungberung area. The research mostly relied,
however, on data gathered from young female factory workers who are activists and
non-activists, since they dominate the light-manufacturing industries.
The key informants were identified through snowball sampling. It started from
a women labor organizer in the regional level and continued to organizers and
workers at the enterprise level union. The data was gathered from 35 KIs.8 It
consisted of ten female workers from a Japanese-owned spinning mill; eight female
workers from a Chinese-owned spinning mill; one female worker from a textile
factory; six male factory workers from two factories; two female organizers at the
Regional Council Leadership (Dewan Perwakilan Daerah or DPD) of West Java and
two male organizers at the Branch of Council Leadership (Dewan Perwakilan
Cabang or DPC) of Bandung City; two elders of community; two factory managers; a
subdistrict officer; and a village headman.
This research focuses on the experience of ten female factory workers and
an ex-female factory worker who was able to achieve the top executive position in
8Names of key informants were changed.
31
union at the enterprise level. These women workers belong to the same factory. Of
ten women workers, six (activists) participate actively in covert and overt actions,
both inside and outside the factory, whereas the remaining four (non-activists) are
rarely involved in labor activism (see table 1). The research ended until the
additional KIs no longer yielded much new insight.
TABLE 1
TYPE AND NUMBER OF KEY INFORMANTS, BY
PLACE OF ORIGIN AND ETHNIC GROUP
Female factory workers Total
Place of origin Total
Ethnic Group
Local Non-local Non-Sundanese Sundanese
Activist 6 1 5 6 3 3
Non-activist 4 1 3 4 2 2
Total 10 2 8 10 5 5
Data-gathering techniques
The life history methodology was appropriate in this research since the
research problem involved an investigation of the ways in which women workers
accounted for their actions (Jones 1989). It was conducted on women worker
activists and non-activists. Two basic forms of account are suitable for life history
analysis. The first is in the form of autobiographies, diaries, records, and
correspondence. The second is in the form of data generated through in-depth
interviews (Filstead 1970 and Bogdan 1974 cited in Jones 1989, 152).
32
Since materials for the first form were unavailable, the researcher focused on
in-depth interviews. However, other data-gathering techniques such as participant
observation (PO), direct observation (DO), and secondary data collection (SDC),
were also employed. PO and DO were useful in observing the actual activities of
women workers in the union and workplace as well as the conditions of the people
and community. The detailed data sets as well as the techniques used to obtain the
data are shown in table 2.
Data Analysis
The data are analyzed qualitatively, particularly those gathered through in-
depth interviews. The result of the research is presented descriptively and is
interpreted according to the analytical framework. In this sense, the particular
phenomena are analyzed to arrive at general principles (Arce 2001, 99-100).
In turn, the life history that was gathered through in-depth interviews is used
to describe the experience of women factory workers in the workplace, the
community and the family and the way sources of identity relate to labor activism. An
participating in labor union activities (overt actions) inside and outside the workplace
and in the daily activities (covert actions) in the factory floor.
Related information such as their perceptions of labor activism as well as
their ethnic differences, migration status, social networks, marital status, gender
roles as breadwinner, mother or daughter, and their relation with other members of
33
the community are analyzed within the various social structural contexts such as
workplace, community, family, and industrial conditions. The situations after the
opening up and legalization of freedom of association in 2001 as well as labor
market conditions are briefly discussed in order to explain the larger context of labor
activism in Indonesia.
TABLE 2
RESEARCH TOPICS, DATA SETS, DATA SOURCES, AND DATA-GATHERING TECHNIQUES
Research topic
Data set
Data source Data-
gathering technique
I. Aspects of the social structure
Community condition
A. Geographical data location: boundaries, land use, land and establishment ownership, housing patterns and development, public services availability, map location
B. Demographic data: structure of residents based on gender, age, labor force, religion, marital status, and place of origin
Village records, subdistrict records, subdistrict officer, village headman
DO, SDC, interview
Industrial condition
A. Industrial data: Number of firms in Ujungberung Size of firms Number of employees (male & female, permanent & temporary) Market orientation (local, national, international) Types of products
B. Industrial relation in the unstable labor market: Number of strikes Forms of collective bargaining Dispute settlement Labor law implementation
Subdistrict records, village records, TU records, subdistrict officer, village headman, factory workers, labor organizers
PO, DO, SDC, ID
34
Table 2 Continued
Research topic
Data set
Data source
Data-gathering technique
Socioeconomic context of community
Socioeconomic data: socioeconomic status (income, education, property ownership, occupation, etc.), main source of livelihood, proportion of formal and informal sector, number of social organizations and characteristic of members, the function of social organizations, access to public services
Village records, village headman, subdistrict officer, the elders of community
PO, DO, SDC, ID
Cultural identification of
A. Historical data: history of community and industrial area, history of migrants (buruh pendatang)
The elders of community members (natives), male migrant
PO, DO, SDC, ID
B. Cultural data: ethnic groups (majority and minority), local norms
workers and women factory workers (WFW)
sources of identity
Demographic characteristics
Age, marital status, working status, length of stay, place of origin, educational attainment, etc.
WFW ID
Kinds of networks Forms of social network among family members, kin-group, neighborhood, fellow workers, hometown and other associations; the use/function of social network; the use of social networks
The elders of community,
members, WFM
PO, DO, SDC, ID
Ethnic identity Dispute, basis of dispute, cooperation, power relations between ethnic groups, perception of other ethnic groups
The elders of community,
members, WFM
PO, DO, ID
Gender identity Division of work in domestic and public (workplace & community) spheres, gender socialization forms in family and community
The elders of community,
members, male workers, WFM
PO, DO, ID
Working conditions aspect
Working trajectory, recent working status (permanent, temporary, casual labor, etc.), job description, type of firm (small, medium, large), number of employees (proportion of men and women division of labor), proportion of wages between men and women, employment relations
TU records, male workers, WFM, labor organizers
ID, SDC
35
Table 2 Continued
Research topic
Data set
Data source
Data-gathering technique
III. The nature of labor activism
Labor activism Trade union membership, trade union activities, forms of resistance (strikes, negotiations, walkouts, slowdowns, etc.), basis of resistance, frequency of joining labor strikes, labor training, union meetings, perceptions on labor activism, number of strikes, duration of strikes, number of workers involved in strikes, agenda of strikes.
TU records, factory workers, labor organizers
PO, DO, SDC, ID
Women and labor activism Identity
Reasons that underlie decision to engage or not to engage in labor activism, perceptions of labor activism, advantage and disadvantage of engaging in labor activism. The number of identities a woman migrant worker holds (as migrant, mother, wife, daughter, factory worker, and so on). Identities that are often held by a woman worker. Kind of networks (family and non-family) that a woman worker has. Networks that are often used by a woman worker.
Women factory workers Women factory workers
PO, ID PO, ID
Thesis Organization
The thesis is organized into five chapters. Chapter 1 presents the
background, the research problem, the significance and limitations of the study, the
review of related literature, and the methodology. Chapter 2 describes the nature of
factory work in the Ujungberung area, particularly in a factory where a substantial
percentage of workers are women. The characteristics of the community where
factory workers are concentrated are also described in this chapter. This chapter is
36
expected to explain structural
embedded. Chapter 3 presents the nature of labor activism and the profile of a trade
union where women factory workers engage. This chapter explains conditions where
hapter 4 depicts the sources of identity,
gender roles, migration status, social networks and so on, among women factory
workers and how these affect their everyday lives in the household, community, and
workplace as well as their involvement in labor activism. It also identifies sources of
identity that have significant impact on labor activism. Chapter 5 presents the
summary of the findings of the study and assesses the analytical framework.
37
CHAPTER 2
THE NATURE OF FACTORY WORK IN THE UJUNGBERUNG AREA
Industrialization in Indonesia has been concentrated on Java Island,
particularly in West Java where the capital Jakarta lies. Since 1990, industries in
West Java have been the biggest contributor to the manufacture and trade industries
of Indonesian products except oil and gas (PPLH-ITB and Bappeda 1994, 28). This
chapter describes general conditions in the Ujungberung industrial area of West
Java. It will be followed by the description of a Japanese-owned spinning mill, the
worksite under study. These descriptions aim to give the reader an idea of structural
The Industrial Center of Ujungberung
The Ujungberung area lies in the eastern part of Bandung City, West Java.
This area consists of three subdistricts (kecamatan) [the Ujungberung Subdistrict,
the Arcamanik Subdistrict, and the Cicadas Subdistrict] and sixteen administrative
villages (kelurahan). In 2005, the total population of the Ujungberung area stood at
210,776 inhabitants, of whom 49.6 percent were women and 50.4 percent were
men.1
1The data is derived from the Ujungberung, Arcamanik, and Cicadas subdistrict
monographs published in 2005. Each subdistrict produces the monographs.
38
This section focuses on the socioeconomic condition of the Ujungberung
inhabitants before and after factories were established, the characteristics of the
and the issues related to the interaction of locals and migrants.
Socioeconomic condition of the residents
In the 1950s, before factories were set up in Ujungberung, most of the land
functioned as paddy fields and palawija (secondary crops such as corn, cassava,
and soybean following rice paddy) fields that were mostly occupied by government
officers and private landlords (Keppy 2001, vii). The majority of local inhabitants
were landless. A few of these inhabitants, however, owned small pieces of land that
they commonly used as vegetable gardens to meet daily food needs. Some of these
vegetables were sold at local markets and the money earned was used to buy rice
and other daily necessities.2
During this period most Ujungberung inhabitants were buruh tani (farm hands
or agricultural laborers) and petty traders. Many of the inhabitants, however, shifted
to construction work in the late 1960s when factories were established and in the
1970s when housing projects in Antapani and Sukaasih area were built. The farm
hands usually joined construction work during the non-harvesting and the non-
planting seasons. Koko, a fifty-one-year-old male factory worker and native
inhabitant, shares his experience:
2Taken from an interview with Koko, fifty-one, a native inhabitant, labor activist,
and factory worker in Grantex, Bunisari, Cicadas Subdistrict, 23 September 2006.
39
Waktu masih di SR, kalau beres sekolah saya ngumpulin daun pisang terus
areng sama bandros. Saya jualan areng sekitar 3 tahunan. Terus saya coba
bangunan bukan jadi operator atau teknisi, sampai sekarang. (When I was in elementary school, I usually gathered banana leaves after school and sold or traded them for dried fish. After I graduated from elementary school I sold
3 I sold charcoal for three years. Then, I tried to be a construction worker. Since 1980, I have worked in Grantex but not as operator or technician but still as construction worker.) Construction work was very popular, especially among those below thirty
years old. The work offered flexible time and a generally higher wage compared to
being a farm hand. Before the factories were established, women were also
engaged in the agricultural sector. Some of the Ujungberung women were also
employed as domestic helpers in well-off families or as weavers4 in factories that
mushroomed in the Majalaya Subdistrict from the 1950s to the 1970s.5
The use of land as paddy fields and palawija fields gradually changed when
factories were established in the late 1960s. The Ujungberung area was chosen as
the center of industry in Bandung City because of the availability of space to
establish factories, easy access to various means of transportation, and its strategic
location that is close to the city. Most of these fields were sold to people or groups
who want to build factories on the site. During this period some of the local
3A sweet tidbit made of rice flour.
4In West Java, weavers used a small wooden frame handloom on which simple shuttle weaving was done (Keppy 2001, 33).
5Majalaya has been known as the center of weaving industry. However, its
popularity has been decreasing due to the presence of modern factories in other parts of West Java, such as Jabotabek, Ujungberung, and Cimahi (Keppy 2001; Setia 2005).
40
government officers in the subdistrict and village levels as well as the local
inhabitants served as makelar tanah (land brokers). They received commission from
every piece of land that they sold.
The presence of factories increased income-generating activities among
Ujungberung inhabitants. Aside from the absorption of local inhabitants to the
factories, many inhabitants opened warung (small shops) and rented out rooms or
houses in order to accommodate the need of workers, especially migrant workers.
Furthermore, petty traders and money lenders also became popular. However, the
practice of lending money is usually hidden since Moslem law prohibits the high
interest applied. In addition, money lending is seen as a hina (contemptible) job.
Thus, no money lenders are registered in the village and subdistrict documents even
though many inhabitants have used their services. Table 3 shows the distribution of
occupations in the Ujungberung area.
Table 3 shows that around 40 percent of the Ujungberung workforce are
factory workers. The rest are distributed among various occupations. The diversity of
occupations has differentiated Ujungberung from other industrial areas where factory
workers make up more than 50 percent of the workforce. In Ujungberung, the
presence of factory workers in the community is as dominant as non-factory workers.
Table 3 does not mention the data of boarding house entrepreneurs or private
landlords that benefited from the influx of migrants to this area. They have rented out
41
their houses or rooms to the boarders for Rp 100,000 to Rp 300,000 (US$11 to
US$33.3)6 monthly.
TABLE 3
DISTRIBUTION OF OCCUPATIONS
IN THREE SUBDISTRICTS*
Main Occupation Ujungberung Arcamanik Cicadas Factory worker 10,919 13,523 12,850 Civil servant 6,046 4,925 8,243 Trader 3,230 4,734 8,479 Army/police 1,626 1,488 422 Driver 586 603 483 Construction worker 934 1,940 502 Pedicab driver 100 - 46 Businessman 182 20 1,978 Retired army/civil servant - 2,593 - Other 6,699 1,364 339
Total 30,322 31,170 33,342 *The accuracy of the data is unverified but it is still able to give a general picture about the distribution of occupations in these subdistricts. Source: The monograph of Ujungberung and Cicadas Subdistricts (2005); the monograph of Arcamanik Subdistrict (2006).
In the 1970s and 1980s the local inhabitants dominated the room rental
business. But since the mid-1990s, some migrants who have stayed for years in the
Ujungberung area bought pieces of land or houses from the local people and also
started to engage in the boarding house business. According to Koko and Wawan,7
many migrants moved from being tenants to owners and achieved higher economic
status in the community than locals. Wawan explains that the ability of migrants to
6Based on the exchange rate US$1 = Rp 9,000 7Interview in Tagog with Wawan, a fifty-one-year-old male native inhabitant,
community leader, and supervisor assistant in TIC (19 September 2006).
42
live in a difficult condition enabled them to accumulate capital. His neighbor, a male
backyard, for example. Wawan also mentioned a male massager from Central Java
who still slept on the floor of his rented room even if he had a big house and a large
field area in his hometown. These migrants were different from the general picture of
the local inhabitants, Sundanese, who rarely saved their money for investment. This
section shows that the socioeconomic condition of the native residents changed
soon after factories were established.8
The characteristics of the industry
Domestic and foreign investment laws passed in 1967 spurred
industrialization in the Ujungberung area. The early industrialization can be observed
through the establishment of textile factories, namely BTN (Badan Tekstil National or
National Textile Body), Grantex (Grand Textile Indonesia Corporation), Sandang
Sari, and Naintex II in the late 1960s and the early 1970s. Initially, these factories
were owned by domestic investors and applied modern technology.
A few years after, other factories including non-textile factories were
established. Nevertheless, the industrial area of Ujungberung has been dominated
by textile, garment, and spinning factories. According to subdistrict reports, more
8The presence of factories had various effects on the economic condition of
Ujungberung residents. As mentioned earlier, private landlords benefited most from the influx of migrants because of their boarding house business. Meanwhile, the condition of landless residents, especially those with low educational background, did not improve so
43
than seventy-five medium and large-scale industries9 operate in the Ujungberung
area. However, the reports do not describe the characteristics of these industries.
In addition, advances in information technology do not appear to bring
significant changes in labor process within industries in the Ujungberung area. The
nature of industry in this area, which is still dominated by labor intensive industries,
may contribute to this situation, except pharmacy. In the mid-1990s, technological
changes occurred in Tomenbo Indonesia Corporation and Lawe Adya Prima
Corporatio
with a higher educational level. Although the managements admit that the
technological changes do not necessarily require certain skills, hiring those with a
higher educational level will gi
more educated workers relatively find it The
following are some of the characteristics of industries in Ujungberung that were
gathered during the research (see table 4).
The rise of factories in Ujungberung was followed by the influx of migrant
workers from various regions in West Java such as Cicalengka, Garut, Cirebon, and
outside West Java such as Central Java, East Java, Lampung, and North Sumatera.
The influx of migrants was linked to the unwillingness of the local inhabitants to work
9Manufacturing industries, according to official definition, are classified into four
categories based on the number of persons engaged: cottage (1-4 employees), small (5-19 employees), medium (20-99 employees), and large (100 and more employees). But since definition which has broadened the definition of small to 5-49; medium to 50-199; and large to 200 and more (cited in Saptari 1995, 36).
44
in the factory during the early industrialization. This is explained in the following
section.
TABLE 4
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF INDUSTRY
IN THE UJUNGBERUNG AREA
No. Factory Location Marketing target
Scale Product
1 Gani Arta* Ujungberung Local Large Textile 2 RDR Ujungberung Local Medium Timber 3 Multi instrumentasi Ujungberung Local Medium Metal 4 Tanabe Indonesia Ujungberung Local-export Large Pharmacy 5 Lawe Adya Prima Ujungberung Local-export Large Yarn 6 Bintang Agung Ujungberung Local-export Large Textile 7 ISAM Ujungberung Local Medium Milk 8 Sandang Sari
Abadi Ujungberung Local-export Large Textile
9 Caturindo Agung Jaya Rubber
Ujungberung Local-export Large Rubber
10 Bintang Mulya Ujungberung Local Medium Garment 11 GKSI Ujungberung Local Medium Milk 12 Samator Ujungberung Local Medium Gas 13 Andarisana Ujungberung Local Medium Textile 14 Heritex Ujungberung Local Medium Yarn 15 Kayamatex 2* Ujungberung Local Large Textile 16 Tiga Negeri Raya* Ujungberung Local Medium Guitar
17 Busana Cemerlang Ujungberung Local Medium Garment 18 Yuntex Arcamanik Local Large Textile 19 Fujitex* Arcamanik Local-export Large Textile 20 Tomenbo
Indonesia Corp. Arcamanik Local-export Large Yarn
21 Sandang Sari Arcamanik Local-export Medium Textile 22 Yupatex* Arcamanik Local-export Large Textile 23 Perintex Cicadas Local-export Medium Textile 24 Grantex Cicadas Local-export Large Textile 25 Indosco Utama Cicadas Local Medium Coconut oil 26 Badan Tekstil
Nasional Cicadas Local Medium Textile
27 Erba Cicadas Local Medium Textile * Already closed in 2004-2005 Sources: List of industries in the Ujungberung Subdistrict in 2004-2005; interviews with factory workers, union organizers, and government officers in the subdistrict and village levels.
45
Local inhabitants in Ujungberung were reluctant to work in factories since it
required a strict and inflexible work schedule.10 This refusal contributed to the
shortage of workers in the area. As KI Wawan fifty-one-year old describes:
Awalnya, anak muda engga tertarik kerja di pabrik. Jam kerja yang ketat engga cocok. Mereka lebih memilih bebas, jadi kuli bangunan atau buruh tani. Ada kesan pekerja pabrik rendah karena kebanyakan yang kerja di pabrik tenun perempuan yang udah nikah dan pakai kain samping. Orang local sih olo-olo. (In the beginning, the younger generation [male] did not want to work as factory workers. The time discipline required was not attractive for them. They preferred to be free [flexible time] and to work as construction workers or farm hands. There was also an impression that factory workers had a lower status because most of the workers in weaving factories were married women wearing printed cloths. The locals are just arrogant.) Wawan also adds that during the first few years of industrialization, many of
the Ujungberung young men preferred to be thugs instead of factory workers. Every
payday, these thugs extracted money from migrant factory workers as security
payment. However, in the 1980s, an operation to eliminate thugs or criminals was
launched by the Indonesian government. This era was known as jaman petrus
. Many thugs, afraid of being killed, stopped extracting
protection money from migrant factory workers. Some of them started to work in
factories to acquire a better image in communities. In addition, Wawan also explains
10
factories had far less autonomy in the production process compared to market traders or agriculturalists, due to the highly disciplined and controlled atmosphere of industrial capitalist production.
46
low views of
factory workers.
When construction of housing projects in Antapani and Sukaasih were
finished and work as farm hands got scarce because of decreasing paddy fields,
many local male inhabitants started to seek factory employment. Local inhabitants
worked as factory workers side by side with migrants. But then, employers in
factories preferred to hire migrants, particularly those from Central Java and East
Java, because of their reputation as industrious and compliant workers. As Putri
twenty-sever-year-old female migrant worker from North Sumatra, states,
Orang Jawa sih rajin banget dan ulet. Biar sakit mereka tetap kerja. Makanya semua karu (kepala regu) orang Jawa. Kalo orang Sunda sukanya leha-leha, asal-asalan dan banyak komentar. (Javanese workers are very diligent and persevering. They will keep on working even when they are sick. That is why all heads of the group [in the factory] are Javanese. Meanwhile, the Sundanese are careless and have too many comments.)
Rosa, twenty-nine-year-old, female migrant worker from Purworejo, Central Java,
also shares a similar impression:
Gak kayak orang Sunda yang langsung istirahat kalau dengar bel, orang Jawa sih mendingan nunda istirahat biar kerjaan beres. Kadang mereka suka bilang sama saya ngapain capek kaya gitu lagian perusahaannya punya Jepang bukan punya kita. Ah saya cuekin aja. Saya kan disini buat kerja. (Unlike the Sundanese who take a break as soon as they hear the bell, the Javanese workers prefer to postpone their break time in order to finish the job. Sometimes, they [Sundanese] tell me there is no need to work hard because the company belongs to Japanese, not to us, but I just ignored that. I am here to work.) However, these stereotypes never caused major conflicts among the local,
Sundanese, and migrant workers (particularly the Javanese workers) in the
47
workplace or community in Ujungberung. At least, there were no records in the
subdistricts and villages about the conflict between local inhabitants and migrants.
The issues of locals and migrants
During the interviews and FGDs, none of the informants revealed issues
related to the ethnic conflict between local and migrant inhabitants. While some have
Jawa koek gede hulu dasar si
Batak 11 in schools or in factories, Javanese and Batak migrants mostly ignore these
taunts and consider these as jokes.
Rarely does one fight back. Nana twenty-seven-year-old, female migrant
worker from North Sumatra, shares:
Ete terus manggil saya, Batak! Biasanya saya cuekin aja, emang dia orangnya gitu. Tapi pernah saya lawan di ruang istirahat. Dia keliatan kaget, setelah itu dia jarang manggil Batak lagi. calling me Batak. I usually ignore her because that is the way she is. However, there was a time when I fought back in the rest room. She seemed shocked. She rarely called me Batak ever since.) - FGD, 22 September 2006 Javanese usually find it difficult to mingle with Sundanese and they prefer to
mingle with other Javanese. Thus, the Sundanese perceive them as an exclusive
group. In fact, it is logical because of the difficulty encountered by Javanese in
following conversations of Sundanese, who rarely use Bahasa Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Batak is known to be a rough and aggressive person. In addition,
Sundanese also comment that Batak eat dogs, which to Sundanese is repugnant
11Dasar type is
some stereotypes attached to this calling.
48
enough (Bruner 1974, 265-266). Batak aggressiveness is considered incompatible
with local Sundanese values that give importance to refined attitude. However, after
some time, most Javanese and Batak or non-Sundanese migrants make
adjustments in their ways and their culture to become more Sundanese-like. In
Bandung, the Sundanese are a numerical majority, dominant culture, and have
control of political power (see Bruner 1974). Therefore, it is very important for non-
Sundanese migrants to learn Sundanese culture when they migrate to Bandung.
In another industrial area called Majalaya where factory owners preferred to
hire migrants, the conflict between migrants (particularly Javanese) and locals
(Sundanese) occurred beyond the factory walls. In the late 1990s, many migrant
workers in Majalaya experienced discrimination when natives threatened and
intimidated migrant workers to stop them from working. The natives also excluded
migrants from community activities such as arisan (rotating savings associations)
and pengajian
and closing the water disposal pipeline. These actions occurred because of the
unwillingness of management to address the demand of natives for factory
employment. After these actions, employers gave more work opportunities to
natives.
These actions never occurred in Ujungberung. Since the beginning, factory
management and a representative of local inhabitants have made an agreement to
give equal opportunity to native community members who lived within the radius of
49
2 km to 5 km from the factory12 even though the proportion of locals is less than
migrants.
Local youth organizations and subhamlet heads (ketua rukun warga) have
often been used as informal agencies to recruit natives. Management informs these
agencies to recruit several young community members every time there are
vacancies.13 Furthermore, Wawan states that the factory also contributes to the
development of the community by providing health care centers and sanitary water,
building roads, and supporting community activities. They also give monthly
allowances for subhamlet heads and neighborhood chiefs amounting to around
Rp 500,000 to mitigate complaints on sound pollution, air pollution, and so on from
community members. This strategy is also useful in controlling workers outside the
factory walls. The factory has used the subhamlet heads and neighborhood chiefs as
law enforcers in the community.
Factory workers live side by side with non-factory workers. The proportion of
non-factory workers and factory workers in the community is relatively equal. Factory
workers have rarely brought workplace issues into the community. In fact,
community elites discourage any action that will disturb community stability and
unity. The lack of ethnic-based conflicts and community and industry relation-based
conflicts that often occur in other industrial areas such as Majalaya has made
Ujungberung a relatively stable industrial area.
12Interview with Iis, general manager in TIC, Cicukang (22 September 2006). 13Interviews with Koko; Wawan; Iis
50
communities (i.e., Cinambo Indah and Bunisari) in the Ujungberung area. These
areas were chosen because of their close location to factories. Thus, the relationship
between communities and factories can be seen more clearly.
In the 1970s the native residents of Ujungberung were concentrated in Cihaurkuku,
Sindangsari, Simpangsari, and Arjasari. But since the late 1970s both natives and
migrants have occupied these areas. Factory workers in Ujungberung are also
scattered around Bandung City such as in Cicadas, Kiaracondong, and even in
Cimahi14 western part of Bandung City (see figure 3). However, factory workers in
the Ujungberung area are concentrated on Cinambo Indah (Secapa) and Simpang
Sari, particularly Bunisari. The majority of Cinambo Indah residents work in Bintang
Agung, Sandang Sari, and Lawe Adya Prima in Gede Bage Street (see figure 4).
These factories are only 10 to 15 minutes away from their homes on foot. In
Bunisari, many residents work in Grantex, BTN, Erba, and Perintex which are
located along the main street, Jendral Ahmad Yani (see figure 5). These factories
are only a short walk from Bunisari. As Titin (51), a former factory worker of Grantex
describes, Kerja di Grantex enak, bangun tidur, cuci muka langsung jalan ke pabrik.
Enggak harus keluarin ongkos. (Work in Grantex was good. I wake up, wash my
t need to pay for transportation. )
14Cimahi was part of the region of Bandung. But since the year 2000, it has become
an autonomous municipality. The city of Cimahi is an industrial center in West Java.
51
FIGURE 3
THE MAP OF BANDUNG CITY
Source: http://www.asiamaya.com/peta/bandung.htm Cinambo Indah The Cinambo Indah (see figure 4), known as the Javanese Village, is part of the
Ujungberung Subdistrict. Cinambo means Jang Jawa (for Javanese). Many
Javanese have lived in this area for years. For local people, the area is known as
Secapa.15 Cinambo is dominated by the Javanese which has made Cinambo
the Sundanese.
15Secapa is a military base in the northern part of Bandung City. Purnawirawan
(retired army officers) who initially lived in Secapa are transferred to Cinambo.
Cihaurkuku, Sindangsari,
Arjasari, Simpangsari
N
52
FIGURE 4
THE MAP OF CINAMBO INDAH
Map legend:
Source: http://www.asiamaya.com/peta/bandung/suka_miskin/suka_miskin.htm
Some Javanese inhabitants married other Javanese, local people, or
Sundanese migrants and built families there. Yuni, a thirty-one-year-old Javanese,
has worked in the Lawe factory for twelve years. She is married to a Javanese
colleague and has one eight-year-old son. Yuni feels comfortable living in Cinambo.
She exp in a perantauan (foreign area) because people
Cinambo Indah
N
Factory
53
-Sundanese women
still need to learn Sundanese, because it is used as daily language at the workplace.
Tuti, a thirty-nine-year- ighbor,
also feels the same way but she is married to a Sundanese man. Tuti has two
children. One just graduated from senior high school and is still looking for a job. The
youngest is studying in junior high school. Although they share similar characteristics
with most of the community members, they do not take part in any community
organization, such as pos yandu16
engaging in community
activity
Tuti and Yuni admit that they spend more time with their female colleagues in
the factory than with their neighbors. They also explain that the community activities
in Cinambo are not very well-organized. The community members only gather during
the celebration of Independence Day every August 17. Since migrants dominate
Cinambo, the area gets quite empty during the Lebaran holiday (observed after the
fasting month of Ramadan). Many migrants in Cinambo go home to visit their
relatives in their hometown for at least a week. They ask those left behind to watch
their houses. This hometown visit is known as mudik.
16Pos yandu
54
Bunisari
Bunisari is located behind the housing area of Antapani (see figure 5). It is a
15-minute ride from Cinambo Indah. Bunisari has become a crowded area since the
influx of migrants to Ujungberung. Koko, a native inhabitant, says,
pendatang datang kesini, kemana-mana yang kelihatan cuma sawah. Tapi sekarang
sih udah penuh rumah. (Before the migrants came, we could only see paddy fields.
But now, all areas have
FIGURE 5
THE MAP OF BUNISARI
Map legend:
Source: http://www.asiamaya.com/peta/bandung/cicaheum/jatihandap.htm
Bunisari
N
Factory Factory
55
The ethnic background of community members is more heterogeneous
compared to Cinambo Indah. In Bunisari, the Javanese have mingled more with the
Sundanese and other ethnic groups such as Batak and Palembangese. Non-
Sundanese migrants use Sundanese as their daily language in the Sundanese-
Javanese with my Javanese neighbors. I rarely use Sundanese when I talk to them.
the research, all non-Sundanese migrant workers were able to speak the Sundanese
language properly.
Furthermore, Koko, a native inhabitant, shares that in Bunisari many migrants
have taken part in pacifying the community. The male migrants are actively involved
in ronda17 and the female migrants join pos yandu. Koko explains that these
activities bind the natives and the migrants. Unlike Cinambo, Bunisari is still
dominated by the Sundanese and the factory workers have lived side by side with
non-factory workers. This composition allows community activities to develop further.
The physical condition of Bunisari and Cinambo is quite similar. Most of the
housing structures in these areas are semipermanent and adjacent to one another.
Most of the residents here are renters. They rent a room or a small house. Three or
more people usually occupy the rooms so they can share the payment. But they
have to share the toilet with three or more households.
17Ronda is a night activity where males work in groups and roam the community
until early morning to guard the community from thieves and other disturbances.
56
In these areas, the room and house rental business is still dominated by local
inhabitants. However, there are some migrants who started to build and rent rooms.
The room owners have applied different payment terms. Some of the owners require
boarders to pay monthly while others are asked to pay yearly. The cost varies from
Rp 100,000 to Rp300,000 (US$11 to US$33.3) per month or Rp 1,200,000 to
Rp 4,000,000 (US$133.3 to US$444.4) per year. Nia, a renter, shares,
Kost-an saya naik tadinya cuma 1,5 juta jadi 2 juta setelah direnovasi. Saya gak mampu bayar. Terus cari kontrakan lain untung ada yang murah dekat sini. Saya bayar 1,4 juta per tahun. (My renting cost increased from Rp 1,500,000 to Rp 2,000,000 after the owner renovated the place. I could not afford it anymore. I looked for another room. Fortunately, there was a cheap place in the same area. I pay Rp 1,400,000 per year.) The aisles between houses can accommodate only two persons. Sometimes
when motorcycles pass by, they need to step aside and give way. The aisles are
more crowded during the day when children play. In some parts, the sky is barely
seen because the roofs cover the aisles. Therefore, the aisles are dark even during
the daytime.
Cinambo and some parts of Bunisari are known as flood areas. During the
research, some Bunisari inhabitants were repairing a bridge using government funds
in order to prevent flooding that is usually expected at the end of the year. However,
Cinambo has worse floods than Bunisari. During heavy rains, factory management
gives workers who live in Cinambo an early dismissal.
Moreover, factory waste has polluted the river along Cinambo and Bunisari.
The river has a black color and bad odor. Residents who live near the river only use
well water for bathing, and for washing clothes and dishes. They cannot use polluted
57
water for drinking and cooking. Therefore, they allot money for clean water at around
Rp 500 (20 cents) for 20 liters.18
Some Ujungberung residents who own fishponds are also affected by factory
waste. According to Dede, an ex-factory worker at Fujitex and a labor organizer,
Orang-orang yang punya kolam ikan sering datang ke pabrik, Fujitex buat minta
ganti rugi karena ikannya pada mati. Pabrik kepaksa kasih ganti rugi, kalau engga
bisa didemo.
management asking for compensation for their dead fish. The factory has to pay for
it. Otherwise, they [the fishpond owners] will hold a demonstration. )
In spite of it all, members of the community have adjusted and rarely
complained about this condition. It may be attributed to the ability of factory
management to maintain good relationships with community leaders. These
community leaders play important roles in mitigating complaints from community
members.
The nature of the factory work in Ujungberung that will be described in the
next section is, to some extent, shaped by socioeconomic conditions of local
inhabitants. For instance, local inhabitants that are recruited by informal labor agents
such as subhamlet heads, especially those who do not meet requirements, are
placed in unskilled jobs such as the packing division. To some extent, the nature of
factory work has been adjusted in order to absorb local employment. The next
18There are several water sellers in the community. They get clean water from
natural water resources in the upland of Ujungberung. They buy the water from natural resources owners for Rp 12,000 per 5000 liters (Pikiran Rakyat, 2 November 2006).
58
section depicts the nature of factory work in a Japanese-owned spinning mill where
women make up the majority of employees. It provides the context of labor activism
that will be explored in the next chapter.
A Profile of the Tomenbo Indonesia Corporation
This section presents a profile of the Tomenbo Indonesia Corporation (TIC), a
spinning mill in Bandung City, West Java. The profile contains the description of
changes in TIC ownership, market orientation, size of workforce, labor recruitment
and mode of entry, work hours system, wage and allowance scheme, social benefits,
production process, and labor activity. This section also includes the segregation
between male and female workers in the factory. The segregation by gender can be
seen in the division of work and the hierarchical structure in the company.
Changes in ownership
TIC has experienced three ownership changes. The company was founded in
1974 and was known then as Naintex II spinning mills. It was owned by a Chinese-
Indonesian businessman. The status of Naintex II was domestic investment
(Penanaman Modal Dalam Negeri/PMDN) and it focused on the domestic market.
In the late 1980s Naintex II met financial difficulties which grew worse. In
1991, the owner decided to sell the company to two companies. Toyo Menka Kaisha
(TMK) Corporation from Japan was the mother company and owned 80 percent. The
rest was owned by Sarana Vida Sejahtera (SVS) Corporation from Indonesia. TMK
59
and SVS changed the status of Naintex II into foreign investment (Penanaman
Modal Asing/PMA) and renamed the company to Tomenbo Indonesia Corporation.
Initially, the factory (Naintex II) engaged in yarn production and dyeing but
under the new ownership the factory focused its energies on synthetic yarn
production. TIC production items included spun acrylic yarn, spun polyester yarn,
and polyester/rayon-blended yarn. The yarn was made from synthetic fibers such as
acrylic, polyester, rayon, and mixed wool (the profile of TIC in 2006). In 2005, SVS
and TMK sold TIC to Toyota Motor Company and shifted its investment to the
building of an electric power plant in Gardujati, West Java. Now, the owner of TIC is
Toyota Motor Com
2006).
In 1991, TIC had a hundred-ring spinning machines with 40,860 spindles.
This factory was named F-1 (Factory One). In 1996, TIC built a second factory
named F-2 (Factory Two) which had eleven-ring spinning machines with 10,560
spindles. Thus, the total spindle in TIC was 51,420, with F-1 as the center of
production. This was shown by the number of machines in F-1 compared to F-2.
Rosa, a TIC operator, shares the difference between F-1 and F- Anak-
anak kalo dipindahin ke F-2 kaya dipindahin ke swalayan. F-
banyak kerjaan. Di F1 kerjaannya lebih banyak dan berisik banget. (If F-1 workers
are transferred to F-2, they feel like going to a supermarket. They prefer to work in F-
2 which is more relaxed and has less work. F-1 is a busy workplace and is very
noisy.
60
During the transition between Naintex II to TIC, all male workers in the dyeing
division were laid off. But this transition was not settled easily. Some of the workers
asked for a higher severance pay and would not leave the company unless their
demands had been met. After the negotiation process, an agreement was made
about the severance pay. However, some workers preferred to stay and were placed
in F-2. In contrast, female workers did not encounter any difficulty during this
transition because the company still employed them. No change took place in the
the way its workers
related to several factors. A major one is the instability of market demand.
The market orientation
In the 1990s, TIC relied heavily on the export market: 80 percent for export
market and 20 percent for domestic market. Because of the instability of the global
market in the 2000s, TIC shifted its market orientation to 60 percent for export and
40 percent for domestic market. TIC exported their products to the United States of
America, Japan, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the Philippines. However, these export
markets were very unstable. Sometimes TIC only exported to a few of these
countries. The number of exports were dependent on the demand.
The instability also affected the production capacity of TIC. The usual output
of 980 tons per month decreased to 600 tons or even less per month. In turn, the
decrease of production capacity reduced the workforce.
61
Size of the workforce
The number of employees in TIC decreased more than 25 percent (or more
than 270 employees) in five years. According to the TIC general manager, the
number has gone down from 1,040 in 2001 to 819 in April 2004. In 2004, the
company cut down the number of workers by offering early retirements for senior
workers those who are close to fifty-five years old for men and fifty years old for
women. Around two hundred employees who met this qualification applied for early
retirement. In April 2006, only 770 employees were left.
The number is still decreasing. According to Rosa, an operator and labor
organizer, in 2008 around 150 workers are expected to retire. Rudi, a thirty-two-
years-old
always
research, one of the informants, Nana, a twenty-seven-years-old migrant worker
from North Sumatra, resigned from the workplace for family and health reasons.
Some of the union officers assume
of employees is an attempt to cut production cost and to respond to the global
market instability. They also believe that the factory will replace permanent workers
with contractual workers. However, there is no way for workers to resist the policy
since the management strictly follows the Labor Law in reducing the workforce. In
addition, this policy of downsizing senior workers is not followed by the new labor
recruitment. Even the labor union cannot resist this policy since this is not against
the law.
62
The labor recruitment
The last labor recruitment was done in 2001. Until now, TIC has not yet
recruited contractual workers. Therefore, all the workers in TIC are permanent
workers. An attempt from the management was once made to hire contractual
workers but SPN (Serikat Pekerja Nasional or National Trade Union) at the factory
level objected and threatened to hold a big strike. Management backed off and
followed another strategy to increase production efficiency. Krisno, factory manager
of TIC, explains:
Merekrut pegawai kontrak itu hanya satu cara agar perusahaan bisa bekerja lebih efisien. Dalam hal ini Tomenbo memilih melakukan cara lain, seperti mendorong kerja kelompok dan mengembangkan kemampuan pekerja agar bisa melakukan berbagai macam tugas.(Recruiting contractual workers is only one way to make a company work efficiently. TIC has chosen to do something else such as strengthening teamwork and improving the ability of each worker to do multiple tasks.)
While there are no new recruits, work requirements in the factory have
changed. At the beginning of labor recruitment in the early 1970s, management was
lenient. At that time, educational attainment was not an important consideration.
Many workers only finished elementary school. But since the early 1990s, factory
management has begun to set higher requirements: junior high school diploma and
senior high school diploma. Iis, general manager of TIC, explains,
mempekerjakan yang lebih berpendidikan karena lebih mudah mengerti mesin. (It is
better to hire those with higher education because they understand how the machine
works better. ) Table 5 shows the distribution of factory workers by educational
attainment.
63
TABLE 5
PERCENTAGE DISTRIBUTION OF TIC FACTORY WORKERS, BY EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
Educational Attainment Number Percentage (%)
Elementary school 154 20 Junior high school 116 15 Senior high school 462 60 University/college 38 5
Total 770 100 Source: The profile of PT. Tomenbo Indonesia (2006).
Table 5 shows that majority of workers have senior high school diplomas. All
of them work as operators and administrative staff members. In contrast, those who
have elementary and junior high school diplomas are only assigned as operators or
packagers. Some elementary and junior high school diploma holders have been
working for twenty to thirty years. The majority of college/university students are
placed in the marketing and management department. Some of them are also
employed as engineers.
The requirements followed in TIC are similar to those found in other factories
in the Ujungberung area such as Lawe Adya Prima and Grantex (i.e., single,
eighteen to twenty-three years old for high school diploma holders and twenty-four
years old for university/college graduates). Some of the factories require a certain
height for the workers. In this case the minimum is set at 155 cm. However, these
requirements were not strictly applied to local residents. Some of the local residents
did not meet the height, civil status, and education requirements. Some were already
married and only graduated from junior high school when they were hired, or their
64
height was less than 155 cm. But the company still hired them to fulfill the social
responsibility of the factory to the community. Still, the local residents who did not
meet the requirements were placed in divisions such as packing that require less
skill.
When the company began operation, the proportion between female and
male workers was generally equal. However, males made up the majority of
employees in the dyeing division, while females dominated the yarn production
division. But since the second change of ownership which led to the shift of
production focus and market orientation (i.e., from domestic to export market),
females have dominated the factory floor. The present general manager argues,
are perfect. In spinning mills, we need those kinds of workers. We need males for
operator works (Park 1982 cited in Lee 1993). Machine operators have become the
center of the production process in TIC. In 2006, around 80 percent of the workers
were female. The migrant workers also dominated the factory floor at around 60
percent. Most of them, like other factory workers in TIC, are married. Only 20
percent are single.19
The labor turnover in TIC is quite low as shown by the shortest work period
which was six years. The age range of the workers is twenty-five to thirty-nine year
old. The general picture in light manufacturing industries, especially TFG (textile,
19Interview with labor organizers in TIC, 14 September 2006.
65
footwear, and garment) industries, however, is different. It is dominated by the
sixteen to twenty-five age group and is saddled by high labor turnover
(Tjandraningsih 2000).
Mode of entry
The company adopts several modes of entry, namely, direct applications,
internships, kin connections, and recruitments by subhamlet heads and youth
organizations near the factory. However, the most common of mode of entry in TIC
is direct application. As shown by Putri, a twenty-seven-year-old migrant worker,
says:
Ada teman yang nyaranin ngelamar Tomenbo. Terus saya bikin lamaran dan kirim lewat pos. Sekitar 2 atau 3 minggu ada panggilan dari manajemen. Waktu itu ada 30 orang yang ngikutin training 3 bulan. Tapi Cuma 12 orang yang diterima kerja. Saya inget, semuanya perempuan, ditempatin jadi operator. (A friend encouraged me to send a job application to TIC. So I made a job application and sent it via mail. Within two or three weeks, the management called me. Thirty people were accepted for three months of training. But only twelve finally got jobs. I remember all were women and were assigned as operators.)
Rosa, another worker from TIC, also had a similar experience. In 1997, just
six months after graduating from high school, she was hired as an operator in TIC.
Before she got the job, she already accepted work as a saleswoman, but the
company required her to remove her veil and she refused to do it. She argues,
ibadah (act of devotion to Allah) but why do I have to remove my veil
( The TIC, like other factories, allows its women workers to wear
the veil and lets male workers pray together every Friday ( for thirty
minutes in the factory mosque.
66
Meanwhile, Titin, an ex-factory worker and labor activist, experienced
different modes of entry in different factories. In 1974, her uncle, who was a
respected community member, offered her a job in Grantex. Her uncle made a
recommendation for her. Then she went to the factory with her job application and
recommendation which she gave to the supervisor. The supervisor asked her to
work the next day. She did not need to follow the selection process; she was
immediately assigned as operator. After a year in Grantex, her relative, who became
subhamlet head, informed her that there was a job opening in TIC, which was still
known as Naintex II at that time. She applied and followed the selection process.
She was accepted and was placed as a staff member of production administration.
She worked for TIC for twenty-nine years and got an early retirement in 2004.
The common mode of entry in TIC is different from LAP (Lawe Adya Prima),
another spinning mill in Ujungberung. Most workers in LAP use personal
connections to get jobs. They ca agent perantara).
The agent a friend, neighbor, or relative who works in LAP. Every time there
is a new worker in LAP, he or she
agent ll participants admitted that they got their job
through a labor agent. In fact, Edah, one of the participants, reveals that she helped
Kalo engga punya koneksi orang
dalam susah diterima kerja di Lawe. (It is difficult to be accepted in LAP if you do not
have any connection with LAP workers. ) In addition, Ima, a group leader in LAP,
notices that Selama 7 tahun kerja disini, saya engga pernah lihat pengumuman
67
lowongan kerja. Biasanya manajemen kasih tahu pegawai dulu kalau ada lowongan.
(I have never seen any job opening announcement in the seven years I have worked
for LAP. The management tells the workers first if there is a job opening. )
This strategy of recruitment is used by factory management as part of labor
control (Mather 1985). The workers admit that they need to control their behavior in
agent
to comply with the rules: no chatting during work hours, no mistakes in the
production process, no late attendance, and so forth. If they fail to do so, the
As Tuti, an operator of LAP, help of
agent bor activism). If anything
agent In LAP, only one-
woman worker holds a structural position in the labor union at the factory level. The
case of LAP shows that the use of social networks has a dual effect. It ensures the
In 2001, TIC applied a set of requirements in their selection process. The
requirements include a general knowledge exam, psychological test, physical
examination, interview, and training for three months. The trainees were paid 80
percent of minimum wage and were required to wear black and white uniforms. After
three months they were promoted as permanent workers.
Work hours
The factory operates on three eight-hour shifts, excluding overtime. The
system is divided into two parts: shift and non-shift. The shift work hour is divided
68
into morning shift (6:00 A.M.-2:00 P.M.), afternoon shift (2:00 P.M.-10:00 P.M.), and
night shift (10:00 P.M.-6:00 A.M.). The shift group works from Monday to Saturday.
Meanwhile, the non-shift work hour is from 8:00 A.M.-4:45 A.M. from Monday to
Thursday and 8:00 A.M.-4:30 P.M. on Friday. On Saturday, the non-shift group only
works for half a day.
Break time is only thirty minutes. This applies for the shift and the non-shift
group. Based on the Labor Law it is supposed to be an hour, but the rest of thirty
minutes is calculated as overtime so they will get extra pay. Some workers have
complained about the break time because they do not have enough time for eating
and praying, considering the long distance between their workplace and the canteen.
They need to spend at least five to ten minutes to walk. Therefore, many workers do
not use the canteen facility and bring their own food to eat in the rest room not
exactly a bad choice for them because they find canteen food undesirable. By doing
so, however, they do not use their food allowance which can only be spent in the
canteen. Those who work in the night shift rarely use their break time to eat but
prefer to take a quick nap.
Various preferences surface in the shift work. Some workers prefer the
morning shift even though the control from the supervisor is more rigid and the work
is more tiring. However, they feel like normal human beings who sleep at night and
because at night the control is very loose and the overtime pay is bigger. Those who
69
are in charge are only group leaders and supervisors. Sometimes the workers are
able to take a quick nap for fifteen minutes. They usually do this after the work is
almost finished or during break time. They cover their body with boxes or sleep
, then they ask a friend to be on the lookout in case a
group leader or a supervisor comes. Nia, a TIC operator, prefers the night shift
because she can still go out with friends in the afternoon and receive a higher
overtime pay. Pipin, another operator in TIC, also prefers the night shift but for a
different reason. For her, working in the night shift allows her to take care of her
children and husband one thing that cannot be done when she works in the
morning and afternoon shift.
Because of the decrease in market demand, the company cut the working
time from eight to six hours. It also enforced policies to reduce electrical
consumption. In 2000, the company changed to diesel power so the production
process only relied on PLN (Perusahaan Listrik Negara or State Electricity
Company). It has become more difficult since the Indonesian Government increased
the cost of electricity for more than 30 percent. TIC needs to spend Rp 1.3 billion per
month for electri
including allowance and benefits.
Wage and allowance scheme
The wage scheme is divided into daily wage and monthly wage. The daily
wage is given to those who work in the production division such as operators,
maintenance personnel, and technicians. They usually call it dalam (inside) division.
70
The monthly wage is given to managers, marketing, and administrative staffs or
those who work in depan (front) division. The front division has a higher status.
According to Nia, some of the workers refuse to ride on the same factory bus with
karyawan depan (the front staffs) because they feel intimidated.
The components of a factory wage are permanent wage and non-permanent
wage. The non-permanent w
permanent wage consists of basic wage, work position allowance, family allowance,
and length of work allowance. The non-permanent wage, meanwhile, consists of
food allowance, transportation allowance, attendance allowance, and work hour
change allowance.20 The amount of work hour change allowance from night to
afternoon shift is Rp 3,000 and Rp 1,500 from afternoon to morning shift. The food
and transportation allowances are given through food in the factory canteen and
buses for taking the workers home. There were attempts to demand a better meal or
to replace the food with money, since only few workers use the facility. However,
during the fasting month the company replaces the food with money at the amount of
Rp 2,600. The attendance allowance is given if the workers work for a full month.
The company gives Rp 30,000 for complete attendance.
The annual basic salary increase follows the minimum wage standard in
a work grade system from A to D. Management decides the grade. The length of
20Work hour change occurs every week. During the change, for instance, from
night to afternoon shift, workers receive extra money (allowance).
71
service does not automatically put workers into a higher class. Iman, a labor leader,
explains that there is no clear reason why certain workers can achieve a higher
class. Rudi also notes that only those who have a close relationship with the general
manager and the factory manager can move up easily. There is no transparent
evaluation procedure. Table 6 shows the basic wage21 of TIC workers by work
grade.
TABLE 6
BASIC WAGE CLASSIFICATION, BY WORK GRADE
Work Classification Rupiah/Month Training 746,000
A-1 (below than 1 year) 746,000 A1 748,000 A2 750,000 A3 752,000 A4 758,000 B1 776,000 B2 791,000 C1 812,000 C2 836,000 D1 863,000 D2 906,000
Source: The collective labor agreement document in 2006; interviews with workers and labor organizers (2006).
No difference exists between male and female workers in terms of basic
salary. However, the family allowance is only given to male workers. The amount of
family allowance is based on the number of children that male workers have. The
married male worker without children will be given Rp 20,000. The company gives
21Government covers taxes for those who earn less than Rp 1,000,000.
Allowances are not included in the calculation of basic wage.
72
Rp 25,000 for one child, Rp 30,000 for two children, and Rp 35,000 for three
children. The company only covers three children. Furthermore, as shown in table 7
the work period allowance is applied equally for male and female workers.
TABLE 7
WORK PERIOD ALLOWANCE
Work Period (years) Rupiah per month 1-5 3,000
5-10 8,000 10-15 10,000 15-20 12,000 20-25 14,500
Above 25 16,500 Source: The collective labor agreement document in 2006; interviews with workers and labor organizers.
No information is available on the work position allowance. But since the highest
work position that can be achieved by a female worker is a group leader (see figure
6) and the family allowance is only given to males, it can be concluded that male
workers get higher total salaries than female workers. To illustrate, Rosa with nine
years of work experience and an A-2 work grade, gets Rp 1,214,150 or US$130 per
month for complete attendance, including deduction for income tax, cooperative
saving, social security, and union contribution. The average take-home pay of
women workers amounts to Rp 900,000 to Rp 1,000,000 per month for complete
attendance and without work hour cutting. This take-home pay is higher than the
minimum wage for Bandung City in 2006 amounting to Rp 746,500.
73
FIGURE 6
HIERARCHICAL STRUCTURE OF TIC
Legend: Source: Factory Manager and Factory Workers.
Board of Directors
Factory Manager
Assistant Factory Manager
General Manager
Personnel, Marketing, and
Finance Managers
Quality Control
Supervisor
Production Supervisor: Pre. & Ring-
Spinning (RS)
Production Supervisor: Finishing
(Fin)
Maintenance Supervisor: Preparation
Maintenance Supervisor: RS. & Fin.
Utility Supervisor
Assistant Supervisor Assistant:
Supervisor Pre.
Assistant: Supervisor
RS
Assistant Supervisor
Assistant Supervisor
Assistant Supervisor
Group Leader
Group Leader
Group Leader
Group Leader
Group Leader
Group Leader
Workers Workers Workers Workers Workers Workers
Female Male Male & Female
74
Table 8 summarizes the profile of women workers of TIC. The profile includes
age, marital status, educational background, work position, length of work, monthly
salary, and mode of entry.
TABLE 8
PROFILE OF TEN WOMEN WORKERS IN TIC
Women cases
Age Marital status
Educational background
Work position
Length of work
(years)
Monthly salary22 (US$)
Mode of entry
1. Wati 28 M SHS M 10 100 DA 2. Rosa 29 S SHS O 9 100-135 DA 3. Nia 29 M SHS O 11 100-135 DA 4. Putri 27 M SHS O 6 100 DA 5. Nana 27 S SHS O 6.5 100 DA 6. Ati 45 M SHS WS 24 100 DA 7. Diah 27 M SHS M 7 100 SHR 8. Parmi 46 M ES O 29 100-135 DA 9. Wida 26 M SHS O 7 100-135 DA 10. Pipin 30 M SHS O 10 100-135 DA Information: Married (M), Single (S); Senior High School (SHS), Elementary School (ES); Maintenance (M), Operator (O), Warehouse Staff (WS); Direct Application (DA), Subhamlet
Source: FGD in TIC (22 September 2006).
In addition to basic wage and allowance, the company also gives other
benefits to the workers and their families. This is explained in the next section.
Social benefits
TIC gives relatively better social benefits to its workers compared to other
factories in Ujungberung. The factory provides a polyclinic complete with a medical
doctor and a midwife which the workers and their family can use. In an emergency
22It does not include taxes, union contribution, debt payment, and others.
75
situation, workers and their families can be treated under company expense in a
hospital referred by the factory. But the factory will only cover 50 percent of hospital
about the polyclinic facility. They feel that the doctor and the midwife do not serve
them well, especially during pregnancy checks and birth control consultation.
The factory also gives an assistance of Rp 200,000 to the workers whose
relatives (such as parents and parents-in-law) passed away and a Lebaran23 bonus
(THR/Tunjangan Hari Raya) that consists of one-month basic salary and bonus that
depends on the work period. The range of bonus is from Rp 15,000 to 60,000. To
illustrate, a worker with five years of experience and an A2 classification will receive
Rp 50,000 plus Rp 15,000 of bonus every two weeks before Lebaran Day.
-home pay are
even in the same position. In fact, the difference between male and female workers
has gone beyond wage, as explained in the next section.
The difference between female and male workers
Female workers make up the majority of operators. In turn, males are placed
as technicians and do other work that need physical strength, like being assigned in
the utility division for maintaining factory supplies such as electricity and water. The
difference between male and female workers has not only occurred in the division of
work but in other spheres such as family allowance, retirement age, highest career
23Feast celebrating the end of fasting period.
76
attainment, and education opportunity. Nevertheless, female workers are treated in
the same way as male workers in terms of basic wage, food allowance, and social
benefits. Table 9 summarizes these differences.
TABLE 9
THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FEMALE AND MALE WORKERS IN TIC
Variables Male Female
Family allowance Yes No Retirement age 55 years old 50 years old Highest career attainment Supervisors (kepala seksi
kasi) The group leader/line leader (kepala regu-karu)
Higher education opportunity Yes No Source: Fieldwork notes (2006).
Some assumptions underlie these differences. The assumption that women
workers are secondary income earners prevents them from receiving family
allowance. They are also expected to retire earlier because of their double burden in
domestic and public spheres. The double burden may make them tire faster than
male workers.
Then, while females make up the majority of employees, males, particularly
Javanese males, dominate the higher positions. Figure 6 describes the hierarchical
structure in TIC and shows the segregation of female workers from the higher level
of hierarchy.
Moreover, the segregation in hierarchical structure is not only by gender but
also by ethnic groups. As mentioned earlier, the manager prefers to hire Javanese
workers, both men and women, than Sundanese workers because Javanese are
77
perceived to be more diligent. According to Rosa, the Javanese occupy about 90
percent of group leader positions and Sundanese migrant workers hold the rest. The
local Sundanese are left behind. This is also the case for higher positions: Javanese
men dominate supervisory and managerial positions.
Some workers say promotions given to Javanese workers are due to their
close relationships with supervisors, who are also Javanese. But Rosa, a Javanese
worker, argues:
Walaupun saya ada masalah dengan kaur (kepala urusan) tapi saya naik
saya sudah naik gol
kriterianya kerja dan absen bagus. Dulu saya yang pertama naik golongan. (Although I have a problem with my supervisor, I still got promoted. For me,
[for job promotion] are good work and good attendance. At the time, I was the first one who got promoted.) Some women workers admit that the Javanese are the most diligent and
responsible workers. This is followed by the non-Sundanese (Lampungese) and
Sundanese migrants. In fact, a Sundanese migrant from Tasik region, accessible
through a five-hour ride from Bandung City, who has also occupied a higher position
in the company. Rosa assumes that locally recruited workers show such lack of
responsibility because they have the support of their families who live near them.
Rosa expounds on the lack of responsibility of locally recruited workers as follows:
The Sundanese will easily throw broken yarns even if these are just a bit
78
The issue of migration status and ethnicity raised by Rosa needs to be
examined further, especially since non-Javanese migrants have often been
positioned lower than the Javanese migrants.
The production process
The general production process in TIC is turning synthetic fiber to yarn. This
process is done by machine technology which is described in figure 7. The blowing,
carding, drawing, and roping process are called prespinning. Female workers
operate these machines. Each worker operates seven machines. The female
workers are placed in the unskilled section, making it difficult for them to obtain
higher positions in the factory.
FIGURE 7
THE PRODUCTION PROCESS
Source: The profile of PT. Tomenbo and interview with factory workers. Labor activity
In TIC, labor activities are organized well by the SPN at the factory level.
Various activities include labor trainings on basic rights, civic education, and gender
issues as well as recreational activities.
Blowing: Messing
up process
Carding: Refining process
Drawing: Fiber processing
Roping: Fiber
stretching process
Ring-spinning:
Yarn-making process
Mach-coner:
Yarn-rolling process
79
An annual vacation is a part of the recreational activities supported by the
company. Workers go to local tourist spots such as Dunia Fantasi24. But for the past
three years, no vacations took place because of the different interests of the
workers. Many workers preferred to get money instead of vacation. So the union
organizers decided not to have a vacation. Another annual activity is the
Independence Day celebration every August 17. It is usually celebrated with games,
sports, and karaoke competitions. During this celebration, the company also
announces the employees of the year (i.e., those who were never absent from work).
According to Rosa, 80 percent of the winners are women.
In addition, there are also weekly activities such as badminton, football, and
volleyball. Male workers usually participate in these sports activities. The female
workers only engage in aerobic activity. However, the aerobic activity has been
inactive for the last few months.
Females are relatively more active in economic-oriented activities such as
arisan, kredit barang (goods credit), and koperasi (cooperative). The union does not
organize these activities. The arisan and koperasi are organized collectively, while
kredit barang is done individually. In kredit barang, those who have enough capital
will sell some goods to their fellow workers who pay on an installment basis, within
two or more months. The period of installment depends on the type of goods. The
cooperative is different from rotating savings associations and goods credit in that it
is very organized. The workers elect the managers of the cooperative. Although
24Dunia Fantasi (Dufan) is a game arena near Ancol Beach, Jakarta.
80
women dominate the factory floor, no female workers are ever elected as heads of
where females can get elected to the top post, as discussed in see chapter 3.
The nature of labor activism in TIC has unique features. Here, the female
workers are relatively active compared to other female factory workers in
Ujungberung. Chapter 3 describes the nature of this activism.
Summary
The rise of factories in the Ujungberung area since the early 1970s has
brought some socioeconomic changes to local inhabitants. The main livelihood of
local inhabitants changed from farm hands to factory workers. Some local
inhabitants also developed income-generating activities to support the needs of
migrants. In social aspects, native residents as well as migrants needed to adjust to
new situations such as crowded areas and polluted environment as well as cultural
differences. The non-Sundanese migrants were required to learn the Sundanese
language to be able to converse with their Sundanese neighbors.
The influx of migrants, particularly Javanese, to the area did not bring any
major ethnic conflict with local inhabitants in communities. However, there were
some perceptions attached to Javanese and Sundanese workers such as
workers admitted that Javanese are more diligent than their Sundanese
counterparts. This appeared to influence management decisions to promote
81
Javanese workers. More Javanese occupied higher positions compared to
Sundanese.
The case of TIC also showed that many workers were dissatisfied with
management in terms of the amount of annual wage increase, set of allowance (e.g.,
food canteen), and social benefits (e.g., polyclinic facility). Besides these
dissatisfactions, gender also underlies the segregation of male and female workers
in factory work and the hierarchical structure. In TIC and other spinning mills, women
dominated positions for machine tenders and operatives, while machine technicians
and other auxiliary workers were men. Furthermore, while women workers have
none of them was promoted beyond
the lowest supervisory level (group leader) positions that differed little from those of
production workers. All women were under the authority of male supervisors and
managers in the formal authority hierarchy (cited in Lee 1993). In addition, women
workers were excluded from getting family allowances. The assumption that women
workers are secondary income earners has disadvantaged them from getting family
allowances, especially when many TIC women workers are main income earners.
The next chapter examines some collective and individual actions taken to overcome
the dissatisfaction at work.
82
CHAPTER 3
THE NATURE OF LABOR ACTIVISM: OVERT AND COVERT ACTIONS
The concentration of industries in West Java, while economically favorable to
the growth of domestic regional products, has also contributed to the increase of
labor unrest in the area. However, the level of labor unrest differs from one industrial
center to another. While the Tangerang area, for example, has been known as the
seat of labor unrest in West Java, the Ujungberung industrial area in Bandung City,
the study site, has a low level of labor unrest. Why the Ujungberung area displays
less militancy is the subject of this chapter.
This chapter first describes the general condition of labor activism in
Indonesia. Then labor activism in TIC, divided into overt actions and covert actions,
y, this chapter will
include a brief profile of the SPN where women workers in TIC are its members.
Labor Activism in Indonesia
number of strikes in the country grew from 61 in 1990 to 287 in 1997 (Depnaker
2001 cited in Silvey 2003, 135). However, while the rate of strikes has decreased in
the 2000s, it is still higher than the 1990 figures. Official report (see table 10) states
that in the year 2005, 78 strikes took place within Indonesia, 22 (28.2 percent) of
which occurred in West Java. In 2004, meanwhile, the number of strikes in West
83
Java reached 39 (34.8 percent). The data shows that labor unrest in Indonesia, as in
many cities, has been concentrated in industrial centers in West Java.
TABLE 10
INDUSTRIAL ACTION (2001-2005)
Year 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 Total number of strikes in Indonesia
174 220 161 112 78
Number of strikes in West Java
53 (30.5%)
96 (43.6%)
61 (37.9%)
39 (34.8%)
22 (28.2%)
Manufacturing sector
127 (73%)
163 (74%)
125 (77.6%)
91 (81.25%)
55 (70.5%)
Workers involved
109,845 97,325 68,114 48,092 56,082
Work hours lost
1,165,032 769,142 648,253 497,780 766,463
Source: Depnakertrans, Ditjen. Pembinaan Hubungan Industrial (2001-2005).
The highest number of strikes in West Java occurred in Tangerang. By the
1980s, Tangerang was already characterized as an area where strikes often took
place. In 1989, three-fourths of all strikes were concentrated in Tangerang (Kammen
1997 cited in Saptari forthcoming). It has gone way past the rate of strikes in other
industrial centers such as East Java (Surabaya-Malang-Mojokerto-Gresik). A large
number of strikes in Tangerang happened in TFG establishments. The Department
of Manpower reported that 55 strikes in 2005 and 91 strikes in 2004 occurred in the
manufacturing sector. The average number of strikes in the manufacturing sector
reached 70 percent from 2001 to 2005 (see table 10). However, some labor activists
estimated that the number of strikes in Indonesia, particularly in West Java, has
gone beyond the official reports since many strikes go unreported.
84
The general increase in labor unrest in the 1990s within Indonesia was
caused by three main factors. First, historically, under the New Order Era (1965-
1998), the Indonesian Government only permitted one official labor union, namely,
SPSI (Serikat Pekerja Seluruh Indonesia
established. The government-sponsored status limited its effectiveness because
SPSI acted
representative, making it unable to protect and improve the needs of the workers
(Hadiz 1997; Lubis 1979 cited in Rinakit 1999; Rigg 1997 cited in Silvey 2003). In
s responses to labor unrest were also very oppressive.
However in the 1990s, workers were slightly freer to express themselves than they
had been previously (Rigg 1997 cited in Silvey 2003, 137). In the context of
keterbukaan (opening up) in the 1990s, more unions were established, particularly in
labor-intensive industries such as textiles, garments and footwear, and the military
was less intimidating to workers (Hadiz 1994 cited in Silvey 2003, 138). The door for
significant labor reforms opened when Suharto stepped down in 1998. In 2000, the
Trade Union Act (Law 21/2000) was passed, which guaranteed freedom of
association (i.e., the freedom of workers to establish independent organizations).1
This dramatically increased the number of independent labor unions which in turn,
contributed to the general increase of labor unrest in the 1990s.
1The freedom of association facilitates the formation of small unions (i.e., ten
workers for establishing a union) and encourages fragmentation, especially when multi-unionism is permitted at the enterprise level and when unions can remain unaffiliated to higher-level organizations (see Caraway 2006, 3).
85
Second, insufficient wage increases also encouraged the high level of labor
a penghinaan, an
insult, to Indonesian people, suggesting that they are aware of international
Third is the role of nongovernment organizations (NGOs) in organizing labor
action. Many NGO activities and prodemocracy forces focused directly on increasing
2000 cited in Silvey 2003). Some researchers have noticed that there are more
NGOs in the Jabotabek (Jakarta, Bogor, Tangerang, and Bekasi) area than in the
Bandung area (Saptari and Utrecht 1997 cited in Silvey 2003).
These three factors may have also contributed to the different levels of strikes
in Tangerang and Bandung City, particularly the Ujungberung area. Ford (2001 cited
in Silvey 2003) explains that military repression has been more pronounced in the
Bandung area. Thus, the labor unrest in Bandung is lower than that in Tangerang.
With regard to wage, although workers in Tangerang receive a higher minimum
wage, the cost of living in this area is much higher than in Bandung. In other words,
real wages in Tangerang are still lower than real wages in Bandung. Therefore,
workers in Tangerang have more reasons to stage strikes. The lack of NGO
presence in the Bandung area may have also contributed to the low level of militancy
in the area.
However, these three macro level factors leave the gender dimension of
activism unexamined and are insufficient to explain variations in the degree of
86
militancy among women workers at the enterprise level. The following section
depicts the nature of labor activism in Ujungberung, particularly in TIC, where
women make up the majority of employees.
The Nature of Labor Activism
in the Ujungberung Area
The picture of West Java as the center of labor unrest is not applicable to all
areas within West Java. The Ujungberung area, for instance, is an industrial area
with a low level of labor unrest. Within the past six years only a few labor protests
occurred and received attention from local newspapers. These protests took place in
Kayamatex II and Tiga Negeri Raya (TNR).
Kayamatex II is a textile factory in the Ujungberung Subdistrict. When the
factory closed in December 2005, around three hundred of its workers held more
than six demonstrations because the management did not fulfill its obligation to pay
their wage for the last ten months as well as their severance pay. The protest took
various forms, from negotiations with the management to violent actions. For
strikes in the factory and outside the house of the owner, and rolled an abandoned
truck in front of the factory. Nani, a former Kayamatex worker, explains
because the management has never kept its promise to pay our wage and
Pikiran Rakyat, 2
November 2006). The gover
obligation.
87
Meanwhile, the workers of TNR received a shock when company officials
announced the closing of their factory on 22 August 2006. After recovering
from the shock, workers demanded their wage and severance pay. They also asked
for their social insurance contribution, which they found out, was never paid by the
management to PT. Jamsostek (PT. Jaminan Sosial Tenaga Kerja or the Company
of Employee Social Security and Insurance Guarantee). Bipartite or bilateral
Kongres Aliansi
Serikat Buruh Indonesia assistance,
went to the Bandung City Representative Councils (DPRD/Dewan Perwakilan
Rakyat Daerah Kota Bandung) to c compliance
Department of Manpower came to the factory to observe the condition of the factory
and to examine why the company was unable to fulfill its obligation (Kompas, 26
management held a meeting that was facilitated by the chairman of DPRD. They
agreed to settle the problem through tripartite negotiations (workers, company, and
government). After this agreement, the workers stopped their demonstrations
(Pikiran Rakyat, 29 September 2006). In TNR, demonstrations did not escalate into
violent actions. Although labor protests take place in Ujungberung, they are less
militant compared to labor protests in Tangerang.
88
Strikes and demonstrations in Tangerang are often colored by violent actions,
involving a large number of workers and longer duration of strikes. In 1991, workers
held the most dramatic strike from the factories of PT. Gajah Tunggal Group. The
strike involved some fourteen thousand workers in the fourteen factories of the
Gadjah Tunggal Group who demanded a wage increase (Ford 2003; Saptari
forthcoming). This was followed by strikes in other factories in Bogor, Semarang,
Solo, and Surabaya. Many of these strikes were large in scale and involved workers
from several companies within close vicinity from each other. The strikes also
involved a large number of women workers (Saptari forthcoming). Then, in 1999, the
workers of PT. Mayora, a biscuit factory in Tangerang, held a strike. It lasted for six
days and involved around 1,800 to 2,000 people. The strike continued for two
months but with less than a thousand workers involved (ibid.).
In 2003, the workers of Starwin, a Reebok shoe company, held a strike for
seven days. They also took the general director as hostage and demanded him to
step down. They also protested the 100 percent THR because in previous years, the
workers received 200 percent. After this move, the company agreed to fulfill the
two terms: the first term was paid soon
after the strike and the second term was paid a few months after the first. On 2
February 2004, Starwin officially closed; 3,700 of its workers were threatened with
massive dismissal without severance pay. As soon as the workers found out that the
company was closed, they held strikes which involved all workers. They were afraid
of the experience of workers who were abandoned by the owner of Doson, another
89
Reebok shoe factory. About three thousand id not receive any
compensation from the company (see www.tempointeractive.com).
In 2004, thousands of workers from a textile factory called PT. Sarasa
Nugraha in Tangerang blocked the street in front of the factory for hours. This
blockade caused traffic jam. The workers expressed disappointment that the
management refused to negotiate with them. Moreover, the workers also clashed
with local thugs who were hired by the company to restrain workers from entering
the factory. Then, the workers decided to hold a speech program in front of the
factory (ibid.).
Strikes in Tangerang involve a large number of women workers. Hadiz (1997,
121) observes that female workers dominate labor unrest in Tangerang and many of
these female workers play a leading role in labor unrest. Even in some of the more
formal gatherings of workers, many female workers tend to be more active and
outspoken than their fellow male workers (ibid., 122).
In contrast, female workers in Ujungberung are rarely involved in strikes,
demonstrations,
public spaces. Although, they join a strike, they prefer to participate outside the circle
of labor protesters. Male workers usually organize strikes and demonstrations that
take place in the factory or the public space. Male workers also serve as key players
in bipartite negotiations in the company. This is particularly the case in Grantex and
LAP. Edah, a woman operator from LAP, admits that she does not want to get
involved in a strike or a demonstration because she is afraid to be fired. If labor
90
organizers force her to join, she prefers to stay behind. Tuti, another LAP worker,
women workers in LAP are inactive. They
are afraid to get fired and the supervisor often intimidates us (women workers) with
Strikes in factories in the Ujungberung only involved hundreds of workers for
a short duration and never involved many factories within the neighborhood. In LAP,
for instance, the strike demanding social security insurance only lasted for three
representative and the management. However, during the negotiation, the
management of LAP offered the labor organizer who led the strike a higher position
structure. After a few years, however, he returned to the union.2 The reason of his
return is unclear.
Aside from strikes, workers in Ujungberung have also taken other forms of
workers scattered flowers (tabur bunga) in the factory first, as a gesture of sympathy
for workers who still receive minimum wage and second, to demand a wage
increase. These two actions were organized by SPN. Workers under SPN are
discouraged to hold stoppage strikes at the workplace that may disturb production
hood. However, SPN encourages
2Interview with labor organizers of LAP, Gedebage, 20 September 2006.
91
workers to participate in public demonstrations (outside the workplace) that may not
endanger their jobs as factory workers (for further explanation, see the next section).
The industrial condition of Ujungberung, which has been colored by factory
closings and workforce downsizings, seems to prevent workers from factories that
still operate actively from taking militant actions. Factory owners have often used the
high level of labor unrest as a reason for them to close their factory and move to
other areas with low levels of labor unrest. Local governments also discourage
workers from holding labor strikes. They encourage workers and members of the
community to maintain unity and stability in their area. Moreover, if a strike occurs,
the local government will immediately respond to it. As explained by the secretary of
the Ujungberung Subdistrict:
Di sini jarang ada pemogokan. Beberapa tahun lalu, PT. Bintang Agung mogok. Saat itu kita bareng pihak kepolisian dan depnaker langsung turun ke lapangan untuk memastikan tidak ada aksi anarkis Ujungberung sih aman. (Strikes have rarely occurred here [in the Ujungberung]. A few years ago, the workers of Bintang Agung held a strike. We (subdistrict officers) immediately went to the factory with administrative village officers, the police, and Department of Manpower officers to prevent anarchy strikes from
Ujungberung is a peaceful area.) The Ujungberung is known as the homeland of the Sundanese people who consider
themselves refined (halus) and civilized (see Bruner 1974). Thus, they appear to
disfavor any confrontational actions such as strikes.
Within the past six years many factories in Ujungberung have closed down
(e.g., Yupatex). Some of these factories, like Fujitex and Gani Arta, moved the
operation to other areas. Moreover, most factories in Ujungberung reduced their
92
related to the global market instability and the rise of Chinese industries in the global
market.
Massive strikes or large-scale resistances do not follow factory closing and
workforce downsizing. In the case of SPN, its labor officers prefer to negotiate than
hold a stoppage strike. For SPN, a strike is the last option after bipartite and tripartite
negotiations.
As an example, two factories under SPN, Grantex and LAP, have gradually
reduced more than half of their workers. Adang, an
has decreased the number of employees from 2,800 to 1,300 within five years. The
Grantex, a textile factory, has also experienced a similar situation. Koko, a
Grantex worker, explains:
Grantex has gradually decreased its workers. There was a time when the number of workers reached 5,000. But now the workers are less than 1,600. The factory does not replace those who left with new workers. The reduction of workers rarely escalated into a massive or violent protest
In addition, the low level of militancy in Ujungberung is also attributed to the labor
market instability. In 2006, the level of unemployment in Indonesia has gone beyond
eleven million. Within this context, workers will not easily risk their jobs unless the
high costs they incur are matched by high rewards (Rutten 2000). The following
section depicts the nature of labor activism in TIC.
93
Overt and Covert Actions in TIC
The form of labor activism in TIC is not necessarily expressed in conflict-
oriented strategies such as strikes. Most of the actions come in the form of
negotiations or in covert forms of action. The exclusion of women workers in
particular jobs (tasks) and authority structures have conditioned them to be more
creative in addressing their needs without putting their jobs at stake. This is
explained in the daily or Covert Forms of Action section of this paper. The next
section first describes overt expressions of labor activism.
Strike: An overt and organized action
TIC has existed for more than thirty years. Despite some financial difficulties,
TIC is
completely satisfied with company policies. During an interview, for example, a labor
organizer states:
Tomenbo is relatively better than other companies in Ujungberung. But this does not mean that there is no problem here (Tomenbo). We (labor officers) think that the company can give more than they are giving us now because they always hide their financial report.
This suggests that even in a relatively stable factory, labor protests can still be
found, especially when the workers think that the company has the capacity to
provide a better working and living condition if they wanted to.
The compa
annual wage increase negotiations. The financial report can be a basis for the
94
negotiation. The absence of this report somehow leads workers to find other ways to
win the negotiation. One way of winning negotiations is through holding a strike.
There are several issues that encourage workers to strike in TIC.
Annual wage increase. Historically, organized resistance (strikes) related to
disagreement on wage increase in TIC occurred twice, in 1996 and 1998. There was
no clear explanation about the process of the strike in 1996. However, Titin, a former
union leader in TIC, shares what happened in the second strike in 1998.
Before the final negotiation with the company, Titin and other labor officers
made a plan. If the negotiators return to the office of the trade union, it means the
(perwakilan anggota/PA) are
ordered to go to the factory floor to shut down diesel machines. However, they have
takes next-
negotiators will go back to the negotiation. They will pretend that they do not know
what is happening behind the negotiation process. When the production process
stops, all the workers will go out and join the next-shift workers in the factory yard to
demand wage increase.
The negotiation ended in a deadlock. The company only agreed to a
15 p
20 percent increase. Mr. Matsuda, the TIC director, was mad when he found out that
the workers held a strike. Then, he gave another chance for a negotiation, with
officers from the Department of Manpower as mediator. They finally agreed with an
95
18 percent increase. Soon after, Titin made an announcement about the wage
increase and dismissed the workers. Actually, this strike only lasted for a few hours,
from 1:30 P.M. to 4:00 P.M. However, within a very short time, SPN (in 1998 still
SPTSK, see next section) was able to organize a strike without any violent action
and got their demand.
During the strike, however, not all the workers understood what happened.
Rosa, a newly recruited worker at the time, shares her experience:
Saya engga tahu ada apa, kok banyak orang kumpul. Saya baru datang masuk siang. Saya diam dan ikut-ikutan aja karena kenaikan upah engga pengaruh buat saya yang baru masuk. Saya kan tetap terima standar upah minimum. (I did not know what was happening, but many people gathered. I just arrived and I was working for the next shift. I was only quiet and just followed [the strike] because wage increase had no effect on me who just entered the factory. I only received the minimum wage standard.)
Moreover, in the case of TIC, minimum wage increase is not the only issue
that can raise a strike. Unfair treatment from the company can also encourage
workers to hold a strike.
Unfair treatment. Another protest occurred after the 1998 strike.3 However,
the protest only involved ten workers, particularly those who became labor
organizers, who were treated unfairly by the marketing manager. The manager tried
less than five minutes, had a deduction in salary. The manager warned Titin to
3There was no information when this exactly happened but Titin guaranteed it
occurred after the 1998 strike.
96
control the workers, otherwise he will discharge her. Titin informed the workers to be
punctual. But it did not stop the manager from finding other mistakes. He took note
of workers who did not wear shoes and uniform such as pants, shirt, and hat. As
Titin describes:
Saya jongkok benerin tali sepatu. Orangnya kan gak gitu liat jelas. Dipikir saya pakai sepatu padahal saya pakai dari rumah. Saya jengkel terus berdiri. Dasar mata kamu picak. Saya pake sepatu dari rumah, semua orang liat hanya kamu saja yang engga lihat. Terus dia diam aja. (I bent to fix my shoelaces. He had problems with his eyesight. He thought that I was just starting to wear shoes at the factory [company policy states that workers should wear shoes from home]. Actually I already wore it from home. I was
shoes from home, everyone saw it. It is only you wsilent.)
After this incident, Titin encouraged other disappointed workers to hold a
protest. The aim of the protest was to ask the manager to resign. After the protest,
the manager resigned but the reason for his resignation was not only because of the
e
head office in Japan. Thus, the manager was asked to go back to Japan even before
he finished his ten-year contract with TIC. Moreover, Titin admitted that her position
as marketing staff allowed her access to suppliers. She knew that some suppliers
were upset with the manager so Titin enraged these suppliers so they would send
disappointment letters to the head of office.
This protest, however, was less overt compared to minimum wage strikes that
l dispute between manager
and workers was only experienced by labor officers who were often absent from
work and by workers who were treated unfairly. Many workers did not join this
97
protest and labor officers did not force other workers to join as well. The labor
officers actually planned to hold a bigger protest if the manager was still hired but
there was no need to do so since the combination of protest and agitation done by
Titin to the suppliers resolved the problem.
Although workplace-based strikes only occurred three times within ten years
(1996- ctive in public demonstrations as
described below.
Public demonstrations: Labor Day and wage increase. Labor protests not only
occur in the factory but also in public spaces. Every year, during the Labor Day (May
Day) celebration and the annual minimum wage increase, labor organizers in TIC
will send the workers to join demonstrations that are usually held in public spaces
such as the City Hall and the Center of West Java Government in Bandung City and
the House of Representatives in the capital city of Jakarta.
Issues raised are related to the demand for a minimum wage that is equal to
KHL (Kebutuhan Hidup Layak or Decent Subsistence Needs). Aside from
demanding improvements in the working and living condition of the workers, they
also demand a fair state labor policy.4 These are issues under which TI
workers are mobilized in public spaces.
4The main issue of Labor Day celebration in 2006 is linked to the current
revisions of the Manpower Act (Law 13/2003) that promote labor flexibility. Carraway (2006, 2-employers to hire and fire workers, easing restrictions on the use of non-permanent labor contracts and outsourcing, giving employers more latitude in determining the
may weaken the labor unions that rely mostly on permanent workers as their members.
98
The number of workers sent by TIC union is always larger than other factories
in the Ujungberung area. For instance, during the last annual wage increase
sent 15 male workers and Grantex sent 10
male workers, TIC sent more than 50 workers consisting of male and female
workers. During the Labor Day celebration in 2006, TIC union sent two full buses to
Jakarta.
The higher level of participation of TIC workers in public demonstrations stem
from three reasons. First is the ability of labor organizers at the enterprise level to
fulfill the needs
s labor organizers to provide meals, drink,
and transportation fees amounting to Rp 5,000 per person entice workers to join.
Based on the observation during a demonstration in Bandung City Hall involving
workers from many factories, it was only the labor union of TIC that provides these
needs for members who join a demonstration.
Second, Labor Day celebrations or annual minimum wage increase
demonstrations are often used by women workers in TIC to relax. Many of these
women spend their time not for protesting but for chatting with their fellow workers
about their family, boyfriends, and other personal issues. They usually gather
outside the crowd of labor protesters. In one demonstration, for example, some
women workers brought rujak colek (peanut-sauced fruit salad) that was prepared
before they went to the demonstration. They ate it together with their fellow workers.
99
According to Ati and Rosa, labor organizers, this is a common practice during
a demonstration. Moreover, Kris, the second secretary of the Regional Council
Leadership of SPN, complains about this practice. She says:
Ibu-Bahkan banyak yang enggak tahu agenda aksinya. Jadi kalau ada wartawan yang nanya mereka tampak hanya ikut-ikutan dan tidak tahu apa-apa. Padahal sebelumnya kita sudah kasih pengarahan. Jadi suka bikin malu pengurus. (Older and married women workers go to a strike as if they will go to a picnic. They will bring some food and eat it together with their fellow workers. Furthermore, some of them do not know the agenda of the strike. So, when a journalist asks them, they only look like followers who do not know what the strike is all about. Actually, we [labor organizers] explain it. They embarrass the organizers.)
participation in public labor protests is also an important consideration for workers to
join labor protests.
Although the TIC management, like other factories, discourages workplace-
participation in
public demonstrations or other labor activities as long as labor organizers ensure
that these activities will not disturb the production process. Therefore, before the
demonstration
This datum is also used to calculate the budget that is needed during the
demonstration. Those who usually join demonstrations are workers in the afternoon
shift (i.e., 2:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.) because the demonstrations often occur from 9:00
A.M. to 1:00 P.M. But if the demonstration takes a longer time, the labor organizers
will call the workers from the night shift to join the demonstration. Thus, women
workers are more liable to engage in labor activism that will not jeopardize their
100
source of income or incur less risk. This means that labor activism also entails the
need for survival (Rutten 2000).
Public demonstrations occur several times within a year, but workplace-based
strikes in TIC only occurred -2001). Since Titin stepped
down in 2001 the labor activism in TIC has been more colored by nonconflict-
oriented strategies such as negotiations. However, the change of leadership was not
the only reason for taking a milder form of action. This is described in the next
section.
Bipartite negotiation: A persuasive mode of action
Labor organizers in TIC conduct bipartite negotiation more often than other
modes of action such as strikes. The negotiations usually occur several times within
a year. By the year 2000, bipartite negotiations have become the only mode of
action done by labor organizers in TIC. They are reluctant to follow their predecessor
who combined negotiation with staging a strike to pursue aims. Labor market
instability (e.g., workforce reduction) and lack of access to actual factory condition
reports have made them hesitant to hold strikes in the factory. Under the new
leadershi
marketing department unlike Titin. Therefore, nobody in the union has access to
company reports that are very important in order to understand the real condition of
the company. A labor organizer, Ati, explains:
Sekarang SPN cenderung mengalah. Dulu Mbak Tin berani gebrak meja karena dia kerja di bagian marketing jadi ngerti kondisi perusahaan. (Now the
101
table [at bipartite negotiations] because she worked in the marketing division, so she knew the actual condition of the company.) Annual wage increase. The negotiation on the annual wage increase usually
occurs at the beginning of the year. The workers and management will negotiate at
least five times until they reach an agreement. For most of the PAs, the wage
increase negotiation is only a game.
Rosa, a PA, believes that the company has already made a decision on how
much the increase in minimum wage will be even before the negotiation starts. But
the company will open the negotiation with a lower percentage of wage increase
than the amount that they decided earlier. This strategy is also played by the labor
union officers who start the negotiation with a higher percentage of wage increase
than their real offer.
increases its offer and the union decreases its demand until they meet in the
is just a game she still joins this
until the company and the workers make an agreement. Nia, meanwhile, refuses to
participate after the second negotiation. Moreover, Nia is also upset with labor
g an effort to change
it.
The annual wage negotiation is usually attended by labor union officers,
first and final negotiation, some Japanese board of directors will attend the
negotiation. Afterwards, they will delegate the decision making to the factory
102
manager and the general manager who are both Indonesians. As soon as they
reach an agreement, the company will throw a party in a restaurant which will be
Collective Labor Agreement (CLA or Perjanjian Kerja Bersama). The CLA
document is renewed every two years. However, in 2006 the company and the
workers who were supposed to start the CLA negotiation decided to postpone it.
They wanted to focus on wage increase negotiation. Some issues were set to be
addressed during CLA negotiations such as family allowance, food allowance,
attendance allowance, and other allowances. When the CLA resumed, the result
or
workers who are widows (see table 11).
TABLE 11
CLA NEGOTIATIONS RESULTS (2004-2006)
Issues 2002-2004 2004-2006
demand Rp (%) decision Rp (%) I. Family allowance:
Male workers without children 15,000 30,000 (100) 20,000 (33.33) Male workers with 1 child 20,000 35,000 (75) 25,000 (25) Male workers with 2 children 25,000 40,000 (60) 30,000 (20) Male workers with 3 children 30,000 45,000 (50) 35,000 (16.7) Widow workers Same treatment
with male workers Exclusive to male workers
II. Attendance allowance 20,000 40,000 (100) 30,000 (50) III. Food allowance 2,000 5,000 (150) 2,600 (30) Source: CLA document (2004-2006).
103
In the case of family allowance, the workers did not demand the family
allowance for all female married workers. Most of the workers, including female
workers themselves, still consider female workers as secondary income earners or
dependent on men for support. In addition, it was difficult to ask family allowance for
all workers, men and women, since some female workers get married with their male
counterparts. Thus, there was no urgent demand for family allowance. This is in
contrast with the reality that many women workers in TIC are main income earners.
This stereotype is supported by labor organizers who do not give a lot of effort in
achieving the demand for family allowance for both male and female workers. It is
ironic that while the majority of the workers are females, males dominate bipartite
negotiations.
Although many workers are disappointed with the CLA results, they are
unable to argue further with the company. The workers have a low bargaining
position, especially in the context of global and labor market instability. During the
negotiation, the company keeps telling the workers daek heug henteu kajeun or take
it or leave it (interview with Nia, 28 January 2007). Since workers find it diff icult to
challenge the company policy through formal outlets and are afraid to engage in
direct confrontations, they intentionally or unintentionally create covert ways to
These actions which often oppose company policies will be described in the next
section.
104
Covert actions
5 Sometimes this intersects with acts
e, her income as an operator cannot cover her
household expenses, especially because her husband does not have any permanent
job. In order to get additional income, she risks selling instant noodles and hot
snacks in the factory. This is against the company rules. To lessen the risk, she
approaches her group leader and maintains a good relationship with all the workers
in the same production line. Moreover, she also keeps the secret relationship
Saya
diam aja lagian supervisor jadi lebih baik sikapnya sama saya; ini kan
menguntungkan saya juga. (I keep quiet; besides the supervisor becomes nicer to
me and Nia finds that maintaining social networks with fellow
workers, the group leader, and the supervisor is very important for the sustainability
of her sideline job.
In spinning mills like TIC, productivity is very important. Supervisors do not
hesitate to warn workers who are less productive. Nevertheless, workers are able to
find a way The act of cheating is more common among night
shift workers. The nature of night shift has less control compared to the morning and
5
105
the afternoon shifts (see chapter 2). Many night shift workers seize the opportunity to
take a quick nap or to chat with their fellow workers during work hours. Nia also
explains that her supervisor, who is having an affair with a female worker, often
disappears for an hour from the workplace. Taking a leave during work hours without
prior notification is against the company rules. But since, this act involves a higher
authority (supervisor), a group leader cannot do anything about it.
Another example of covert action is work slowdown. Some workers slow
down work to display their disappointment with their working conditions. The
slowdown actions are usually done by locally recruited workers (Sundanese). Unlike
Javanese workers who are known as hardworkers, locally recruited workers are
quite indifferent. Local Sundanese admit that there is no need to do hard work since
the company does not belong to the workers but to Japanese. One of these workers
says:
Kerja secukupnya aja engga perlu cape-cape. Ini kan bukan perusahaan kita yang untung mereka. Kita cuma dapet capeknya aja.(No need to work hard, just enough [work]. This [TIC] is not our company. They [Japanese] benefit while we only get tired.) These are some examples of slowdown actions in TIC: coming a few minutes
late after a break time, talking to fellow workers, and going to the rest room
frequently during work hours. These actions often make the group leader (Javanese)
upset, but they neglect this complaint. Sometimes, the workers gossip behind the
sor. Some of
nce between
hardworkers and nonhardworkers in terms of the amount of income, especially when
106
the workers in TIC do not work on a piece-rate basis (borongan). The difference of
income between a hardworker and a nonhardworker is only in work grade since the
nonhardworkers are rarely promoted.
Some workers like Rosa are able to confront authority directly. Rosa is known
as a bright and brave worker. She has gained popularity since she won a writing
competition6 in the company and received Rp 2,000,000 (US$220). She was also
department line rely on her when they have a problem with the authorities, especially
in relation to the production process. As Rosa shares:
Saya ribut sama kepala urusan. Dia memperkenalkan sistem produksi baru yang menurut saya menyulitkan pekerja dan bisa menimbulkan kesalahan. Saya didukung sama teman-teman. Saya ngomong sama dia, tapi dia keukeuh saya jelasin sama dia, kayanya dia tersinggung sama saya terus pergi. Besoknya tetap memaksakan kehendak dia. Tapi saya bilang sama teman-teman untuk tetap kerja dengan cara lama, biar saya nanti ngomong sama pak Krisno. (I had an argument with my supervisor. He [supervisor] introduced a new production system that was more complicated and could cause a lot of mistakes. My friends [workers in the same department line] supported me. I talked to him but he insisted to do it in his own way. I explained my side to him. I thought he was insulted when he left the conversation. The next day, he still asked us to follow his order. But I talked to my friends to work based on previous procedures. I will talk to Pak Krisno [factory manager] later.) When she shared the story, she admitted that she is actually worried. Thus,
she said that she will explain the situation to the labor officers of SPN and ask for
support. Covert actions seem to dominate the nature of labor activism in TIC while
collective actions that are usually done by SPN officers only occur during annual
wage increase and collective labor agreement negotiations.
107
SPN and Its Women Members
SPN was originally founded as SPTSK (Serikat Pekerja Tekstil Sandang Kulit
or the Textile, Cloth, and Leather Trade Union) which was affiliated with FSPSI
(Federasi Serikat Pekerja Seluruh Indonesia or The Federation of All Indonesian
decrease of members in textile, cloth, and leather industries owing to labor flexibility
(i.e., the increase of nonpermanent labor contracts and outsourcing practices) forced
SPTSK to broaden its coverage including manufacture in the general, trade, and
service sectors. In 2001, SPTSK changed its name to SPN. However, unions at
some enterprise levels (e.g., Yupatex) refused to join SPN and retained SPTSK.
Aims of the SPN
The main aim of SPN is to build solidarity among workers in Indonesia in
protect
working conditions, including working security, healthy working environment, and
work sustainability. SPN also aims to assist, support, and educate workers to
improve their knowledge in strengthening labor movement and collective negotiation
rights.
a sufficient and fair remuneration system. In addition, the Central Council Leadership
6The theme was strategies to improve productivity.
108
also encourages all SPN members to resist the revision of Labor Law No. 13/2003
minimum wage increase demand and Labor Day celebration), SPN brings up these
issues.
SPN discourages workers from taking up violent stoppage strikes and instead
of their awareness of labor laws and regulations. Therefore, SPN is quite active in
providing labor trainings to organizers at the enterprise level. SPN collaborates with
local and international NGOs to organize labor trainings. Stoppage strikes will only
be taken if bipartite negotiations end in deadlock. This strategy appears to contribute
to the general low level of militancy in Ujungberung.
Members and financial support
The members of SPN in 2006 totaled six hundred thousand from nine
provinces. In West Java 178,000 workers joined SPN with nine thousand workers
from Bandung City. In TIC, more than seven hundred workers registered as
members of SPN and about six hundred are women workers. The members of SPN
are obliged to contribute 0.5 percent of their minimum wage for union dues. This
member contribution will be used to cover operational expenses (i.e., office,
First-time contributors, however, are required to pay a percent of their
minimum wage and 0.5 percent for the following months as long as they are
members of SPN. To take an example, based on the minimum wage standard in
109
Bandung City in 2006 (i.e., Rp 746,500), a new member is required to pay Rp 7,400
(less than US$1) and Rp 3,700 monthly. SPN applies a check-off system where
union dues are automatically deducted from the salary of its members.
The distrib s is divided among labor unions at
the enterprise, city, regional, and national levels. The union at the enterprise level
will receive 50 percent while the rest is distributed to SPN at the city level (30
percent), regional level (10 percent), and national level (10 percent). Dede, the
president of Branch Council Leadership (Dewan Perwakilan Cabang) of SPN,
explains:
We cannot rely on member contributions. The amount of contributions is too little and it cannot cover the operational expenses of SPN. We need to find other financial resources.
hree months. Labor
organizers at each level prepare this report.
SPN has several financial resources such as cooperatives, international
funding agencies, and international trade union aids. For the past few years, ACILS
(American Center for International Labor Solidarity) has supported some projects of
SPN such as labor trainings. SPN manages its project expenses so they can save
from it (interview with SPN officers, September 2006).
The following is the description of the organizational structure of SPN,
particularly in Bandung City, at the enterprise level.
110
Organizational structure
Similar with other trade unions, the organizational structure of SPN starts
from the highest to the lowest level (i.e., national, regional, local, and enterprise
levels). Figure 8 presents an organizational chart of SPN.
FIGURE 8
THE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF SPN
Source: Statutes and Rules of Association of SPN (6 June 2003).
The trade union leadership (Pimpinan Serikat Pekerja/PSP) is a
representative of SPN at the enterprise level. The PSP of TIC is responsible to the
Branch Council Leadership (Dewan Pimpinan Cabang/DPC) of SPN in Bandung
Central Council Leadership (National)
Regional Council Leadership
Branch Council Leadership
Trade Union Leadership
Trade Union Leadership
Trade Union Leadership
Union Members Union Members Union Members
111
City. The board formation of DPC consists of the president (male) and three vice-
presidents (two males and one female), and secretary and vice-secretary (males).
Thus, the board formation is occupied by only one female, Wati, a TIC worker who
was elected as third vice-president and is in charge of educational programs for
workers. Actually, there is a need to include more females in the organizational
st
women in these activities may affect policies concerning such issues as childcare,
pay equity, family allowance, clinic facility, and others. Moreover, the presence of
more women in leadership may stimulate greater involvement by rank-and-file
women (Melcher et al. 1992).
In the case of TIC, however, more female workers become officers of PSP.
The board formation of PSP consists of a president (male), four vice-presidents (two
males and two females), a secretary (male), and a treasurer (female). The first and
fourth vice-presidents and treasurer are usually female workers. The first vice-
president is responsible for organizational issues and the fourth vice-president is in
-presidents are
responsible for legal advocacy, sports, and art, respectively. Thus, there are three
women and four men in the organizational structure. In addition, female workers
participate in the organizational structure in PSP compared to DPC. However, the
female officers of PSP only deal with issues that may perpetuate their gender roles.
-president is very crucial.
112
But the fourth vice-president only acts as a note taker of the problems related to
con
bipartite negotiations or not depends on the labor officers Although they
raise these issues during the negotiations, the company will easily refuse to fulfill
their demands since labor union officers do not have a basis to back up their
demands.
The PSP only focuses its energies on collective actions and labor trainings.
They do not pay attention to individual actions on the factory floor unless their
actions are detected by the 115-116). Covert
the problem may jeopardize the work sustainability of the workers.
As mentioned earlier, women workers make up the majority of the members
of SPN in TIC. Six out of about six hundred women workers are actively involved in
labor activism inside and outside the workplace. The six women activists perceive
the advantages of the labor unions differently from the non-activists, as described in
the next section.
113
Women activists see the advantages of joining the labor union differently from
non-activists. For the women activists the labor union not only assists them when
they encounter industrial relation problems (e.g., unfair treatment from management)
but also serves as a means for capacity building, enhancing knowledge, and
Aktif di SB banyak manfaat, nambah
wawasan ilmu tentang organisasi, hak-hak pegawai, masalah jender dan UUK, dan
juga nambah relasi teman. (There are many advantages I can obtain by getting
actively involved in the labor union such as enhancing knowledge about the
r law,
Nia suppor
Bagi saya SB bisa buat pengembangan kapasitas dan memperluas jaringan. Kalau ada pelatihan buruh, saya engga hanya dapat ilmu tapi juga teman dari serikat lain atau pabrik lain.(For me, the labor union can be used for capacity building and to broaden networks. During labor trainings I do not only get knowledge but also friends from other unions or factories.) Meanwhile, Wati who has more labor unions experience compared to Rosa
and Nia, joins the trade union not only to protect e
knowledge but also because it is an opportunity to join a political party that may
allow her to gain more capital. In one conversation, Wati says:
I want to join a political party because of the way its work is similar with trade union. Now, I know how the trade union works. Besides, I can get more money from here.
114
Actually, she echoes the sentiments of labor officers who already joined a political
party or became a caleg (calon legislatif or legislative candidate) for the city,
provincial, or national level.
Those who are less active in labor activism, however, simply see the labor
union as a place to overcome their problems in the factory and an information
center, not only about labor regulations but also about other issues that may be
irrelevant in terms of trade union roles such as how to get a loan from the factory.
Kalau ada apa-apa bisa ngadu, ada
yang melindungi jadi tidak khawatir. (I can ask protection from the labor union if
something happens to me in the workplace; I do not have to worry. ) Pipin, a TIC
operator, also relies on the union every time she has problems with the factory or
needs to ask about some labor regulations or anything else. Table 12 summarizes
the advantages that may be gained by being a union member.
This description suggests that the more advantages can be obtained from the
presence of a labor union, the more its members are willing to get involved in labor
union activities. In addition, activists are willing to take the risk of not being easily
promoted in the factory as other workers who rarely participate in labor activism. By
being activists, they feel needed and important. As explained by Rosa:
Kerja memang untuk uang, tapi hidup bukan hanya untuk kerja. Sejak aktif di serikat buruh banyak orang kenal saya dan saya merasa dibutuhkan. Sebelum saya gabung di SB engga ada orang yang peduli sama saya. Tapi sekarang mereka peduli dan mengakui keberadaan saya. Waktu pergi ke pasar, orang menghargai dan nanya, mau pergi kemana? (Work is for money, but we live not only to work. Since joining the labor union, many people knew me and I felt needed. Before, nobody cared about me. But now,
115
they do care and acknowledge my presence. When I go to the market, people respect me and ask where I am going.)
TABLE 12
ADVANTAGES GAINED BY ACTIVISTS AND NON-ACTIVISTS IN LABOR UNION
Advantages Activists Non-activists
Labor union as a medium to address industrial relation issues V V
Labor union as an information center V V Labor union as a medium for capacity building and enhancing knowledge V -
Labor union as a medium for expanding social networks/gaining a certain social status
V -
Source: Interview with women workers (September-January 2006).
They also want to make significant changes. Intentions to make significant changes
usually come after they attend labor trainings or join discussions with other activists.
These cases also show that labor organizers have a higher social status
compared to non-labor organizers. This status may enhance social capital that is not
necessarily economic but political, especially in the case of Wati. These differences
may contribute to the degree of militancy among the women workers in TIC.
Experiences that lead to labor activism
Women workers in TIC have different experiences that lead them to become
labor activists. In the case of Rosa, a problem with the company encouraged her to
organizer in TIC. As narrated below:
Pertama kenal SPN, karena saya di SP. Ketahuan duduk oleh Jepang saat kerja, setengah jam mau pulang. Sudah beres semua. Saya santai duduk di
116
roda lihatin mesin sambil pake kerudung. Ada Jepang..aku dilaporin. Saya disuruh nandatangan SP oleh karu saya. Saya enggak tahu apa-apa. Udah Ria tandatangan aja karena enggak akan mempengaruhi golongan dan gaji kamu, enggak akan dipecat. Saya enggak ngerti Saya tanda tangan. Terus ada panggilan dari advokasi SPN mbak Wati. Suruh membuat berita acara. Kata Wati, harusnya kamu jangan tanda tangan kalo enggak merasa salah.
-mana juga enggak bisa ditarik karena kamu nandatangan. Iya juga saya jadi gondok. Kalau operator di SP Karu jg di SP. Karu saya diam saja. Kita punya sedikit ideologi, Saya enggak mau diem saja. (I knew more about SPN when I got a warning letter from the company. About thirty minutes before my work ended, I was sitting on the trolley and watching the machine. I was wearing my veil. A Japanese boss saw me and reported me [to the supervisor]. Then, my group
the letter, it will ndid not know anything, so I just signed it. Then, an advocacy team of SPN [Wati] called me and asked me to write a report about what had happened. Wati advised me not to sign anything if I was not guilty. But then my
if you report the case, it cannot be canceled because
warning, its group leader will get it also. My group leader just kept quiet. I quiet about this.)
After this incident, she started to join labor union activities. In 2004, she was elected
to represent workers in her department line in labor meetings, bipartite negotiations,
and labor trainings in and outside the factory.
Meanwhile Wati, the third vice-president of Branch Council Leadership
(Dewan Perwakilan Cabang/DPC) of Bandung City, started to get involved in labor
activism at the enterprise level when the union leader of SPN in TIC, Titin, offered
her to join labor training. As she recalls:
Awal ditawari pendidikan perburuhan oleh Mbak Titin, nyambung dengan pengalaman saat SMA. Tidak pernah terbayang kegiatan perburuhan kaya apa. Di awal sempat stress karena harus berhadapan dengan perusahaan karena dibelakang kita banyak yang bergantung. (Titin encouraged me to join a labor training. It was related to my organization experience in high school. I never imagined what labor activism would be. In the beginning [first labor
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negotiation], it felt stressful because we have to deal with the company. Meanwhile, many people [workers] relied on us.)
After she accept organizational
structure at the enterprise level. From the union enterprise level, Wati moved up to
the DPC of Bandung City. In 2000, she was elected to be the third vice-president of
DPC. Titin was the one who promoted Wati in DPC.
In the case of Nia, the strike in 1998 aroused her curiosity about labor
activism. Soon after the strike, she started to discuss labor issues with some labor
organizers, but her activities outside the factory did not give her much time to get
actively involved in the labor union. In 2004, she was elected to represent the
workers in her department line and started to get involved in bipartite negotiations
and labor trainings.
These young women activists in TIC are quite outspoken. In fact, some of
them do not hesitate to speak in front of hundreds of factory workers as well as in
meetings with government officers. Rosa states:
Kalau kita didalamnya baru saya ngerasa memang kita harus. Saya sempat orasi di DPRD kota Bandung di depan 600 orang. Kita memperjuangkan hak kita karena kita mengerti. Saya dan Nia gantian. (When we hold strikes I feel that we have to do this [strike]. I orated at the House of Representatives in Bandung City in front of six hundred people. We fight for our rights because we understand [the condition]. Nia [labor organizer] and I made orations alternately.)
During a hearing about education with The Representative Council of
Bandung City (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Daerah/DPRD Kota Bandung) on 29
November 2006, Wati demonstrated her ability to speak in front of the members of
118
DPRD and journalists. These three cases have shown various events that underlie
their decision to be labor activists.
Summary
The high level of labor unrest during the 1990s was seen in Tangerang, West
Java. Meanwhile, the Ujungberung area, another industrial area in West Java,
remained relatively calm and less militant. Previous researches mentioned that
strong state repression, higher real wages, and the lack of NGOs in Ujungberung,
Bandung City contributed to the low level of militancy in the area compared to
Tangerang. In addition, the nature of Sundanese-dominated communities that give
high value to stability and unity seemed to contribute to the lack of militancy in
Ujungberung.
What appears on the macro level also holds true on the micro level. Workers
in Ujungberung, exemplified by the case of TIC, prefer to take the negotiation mode
or covert actions as acts of resistance instead of stoppage strikes in order to address
workplace issues. Women workers, in particular, develop covert actions in the
factory floor to address their problems without putting their jobs at risk. The covert
they will become a union matter if the
company notices and the action may endanger
platform which discourages workers from going on stoppage strikes at the enterprise
level may also contribute to the general low-level militancy in Ujungberung.
Although the level of strikes in TIC is quite low like other factories in
Ujungberung, it is relatively easier for women workers in TIC to join a public
119
demonstration that incur less risk and is less time consuming. The ability of the labor
union at the enterprise level to provide for the needs of workers during
demonstrations, the ways women workers give a positive valuation to a public
demonstration, and the lenient attitude of management toward participation of
workers in labor activism, particularly public demonstrations, are some factors that
con rallies. In
other words, although the nature of labor activism in TIC paints the picture of
Ujungberung as a low-level militancy area, labor organizers at the enterprise level
still encourage its members to get involved in public demonstrations or to at least
threaten management with strikes. This is also a strategy of the labor union to
address industrial condition (e.g., annual wage increase and unfair labor regulations)
issues without dir
source of income, particularly within the context of global and labor market instability.
In the case of TIC, more women workers hold positions in the union structure
compared to other factories in Ujungberung. Of seven positions in the PSP of TIC,
women workers hold three. In fact, for more than ten years, the PSP was under a
t advantages that can be
gained from a labor union. They do not only see the labor union as a medium to
address industrial relation problems and as a center of information, as the majority of
women workers in TIC do, but also as a medium for capacity building, enhancing
knowledge, and expanding social networks. These differences may also contribute
to the degree of militancy among women workers. Moreover, some TIC women
120
workers have various experiences that led them to be labor activists. Experiences
such as unfair treatment from the company, curiosity, and an invitation from a senior
labor activist led these women workers to labor activism.
not only examine the actions of organizers or conditions where women workers are
mobilized, but also the women themselves and the ways they interpret conditions
activism.
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CHAPTER 4
SOURCES OF IDENTITY THAT ENABLE AND CONSTRAIN
In order to understand the formation of women worker activists, the study
looks not only into social structures but also to agency or to the women workers
themselves. This understanding parallels the importance Woodward (2000) gives to
social structures as well as to individual decisions in the formation of identity. But
structural conditions that appear to affect women work
chapters 2 and 3, for instance, are insufficient to explain variations in the degree of
nvolvement in labor activism. Focusing on agency may reveal
more, especially the capacity of women workers to challenge structural constraints
and to reconstruct their own identity in order to participate actively in labor activism.
This chapter focuses on the narrations of ten women workers in TIC and the case of
an ex-TIC woman worker who was able to achieve the top executive position in the
union at the enterprise level. With these cases, the study hopes to describe the ways
in which these women workers give importance to their sources of identity. This
Sources of identity such as age, gender roles, marital status, migration status,
ethnicity, and social networks are clues to understanding women w
to be labor activists (or non-activists). Moreover, as Burke (1980 cited in Sharon
122
activism.
The Ten Women Workers
All women workers in TIC, except women in managerial positions, are
registered as members of the SPN. Nevertheless, union membership does not
automatically put these women workers under the category of labor activists. Among
the ten TIC women workers who are the focus of this study, six are labor activists
and four are non-activists.
The six labor activists engage in overt and covert actions that take place
organizational structure at the enterprise level, two are wor
one has been elected as a labor officer in the DPC of Bandung City. Meanwhile, the
non-activists, like the majority of women workers in TIC, prefer not to get involved in
the union structure and labor organizing processes. Two of these non-activists,
although uninvolved in labor union activities, still show a certain degree of resistance
through covert actions like work slowdown, gossip, and so on. The remaining two
fully restrain themselves from overt and covert actions. However, these two are still
union members.
Who are the ten women workers? This section is divided into three parts:
demographic characteristics, household characteristics, and economic background
which include reasons for seeking factory job. The exploration of w
123
characteristics and background may give a better understanding of their decision to
engage (or not engage) in labor activities.
Demographic characteristics
Of the ten women workers, eight are from non-local origins (i.e., two
commuters and six migrants). Five of those from non-local origins are labor activists.
The workers from non-local origins came from neighboring regions and other
provinces in or outside the Java Island. Of the eight, three are Sundanese, three are
Javanese, and two are Batak. This supports the fact that women workers in TIC
come from different ethnic groups.
Since 2000, as mentioned in chapter 2, married women workers with one to
three children have dominated the workforce in TIC. Their ages vary from 26 to 46
years old. Nevertheless, those below 35 years old still dominate TIC employment. It
is not surprising then, that more young women workers participate in labor activism.
Of the ten women workers, four started to engage in labor activism when they were
still below 25 years old and single. But one (Pipin), withdrew from labor union
activities as soon she got married. In addition, all except two women workers are
affiliated with Islam while two are affiliated with Protestantism. Table 13 summarizes
the demographic characteristics of the ten women workers who served as this
Household characteristics
Seven out of the ten women workers are the main income earners of the
household. Their husbands are either unemployed or irregularly employed and earn
124
TABLE 13
DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THE INFORMANTS
Informants Place of origin Ethnic group
Age at start of activism/ current
age
Current Marital
status/No. of children
Marital status/ No. of
children at start
of activism
Religion
Labo
r act
ivis
ts
1. Wati Cicalengka Sundanese 20 / 28 Married (M)/1
S Islam
2. Rosa Purwokerto Javanese 27 / 29 Single (S) S Islam 3. Nia Kebumen Javanese 23 / 29 M/1 M/1 Islam 4. Putri North
Sumatera Batak 22 / 27 M/1 S Protestant
5. Wida Ujungberung Sundanese 22 / 26 M/0 S Islam 6. Ati Cibaduyut Sundanese 27 / 45 M/3 M/1 Islam
Non
-ac
tivis
ts 7. Parmi Purworejo Javanese - / 46 M/2 - Islam
8. Diah Ujungberung Sundanese - / 27 M/1 - Islam 9. Pipin Cileunyi Sundanese 24 / 30 M/3 S Islam 10. Nana North
Sumatera Batak - / 27 S - Protestant
Source: FGD (22 Sept 2006) and in-depth interviews (Sept-Dec 2006).
less than the wives. The remaining three women act as secondary income earners.
s income is just a bit
sustainability of the household. The household size of these women varies from one
to seven members. Some have parents-in-law and sisters-in-law residing with them.
The majority of these women has lived separately from their parents
(neolocal), either renting a room or owning a small house, except two. One (Rosa)
still live with her parents (matrilocal), whereas another one (Diah) lives with her
parents-in-law/husband (virilocal). Young married women like Wati, Wida, and Pipin
are able to own houses through the support of their parents. Meanwhile, Ati bought a
125
house through her husband and Parmi acquired a house through her own savings.
Of the ten informants, two (Pipin and Diah) live in the same neighborhood with their
extended families or kin members. Living with kin members appears to constrain
their participation in labor activism. This is summarized in Table 14.
TABLE 14
HOUSEHOLD CHARACTERISTICS OF THE INFORMANTS
Informants HH size
House ownership/type of
residence status income
rank
Labo
r act
ivis
ts
1. Wati 3 Owned/neolocal Irregularly employed
Primary
2. Rosa 3 Owned by parents /matrilocal
- Primary
3. Nia 2 Rented/neolocal Irregularly employed
Primary
4. Putri 4 Rented/neolocal Employed Secondary 5. Wida 2 Owned/neolocal Employed Secondary 6. Ati 5 Owned/neolocal Self-employed Primary
Non
-ac
tivis
ts 7. Parmi 4 Owned/neolocal Unemployed Primary
8. Diah 7 Owned by parents-in-law- /virilocal
Unemployed Primary
9. Pipin 5 Owned/neolocal Employed Secondary 10. Nana 1 Rented/neolocal - Primary
Source: FGD (22 Sept 2006) and in-depth interviews (Sept-Dec 2006).
Economic background and reasons for seeking factory employment
The ten women workers were recruited for factory work when they were in
their late teens or early twenties and had no previous factory work experience. They
also entered TIC as single or unmarried women. TIC, like other manufacturing
industries in Indonesia, prefer to employ young women owing to assumptions of their
productivity and flexibility (Brydon and Chant 1989; Safa 1981; Wolf 1999).
126
The eagerness to gain some financial autonomy from the family and the lack
of alternative jobs are major reasons why young women seek factory employment.
As Wati, daughter of an ex-factory worker explains,
biar bisa beli apa aja yang saya pingin tanpa minta orang tua. (I want to have my
own money so I can buy what I want without relying on
meanwhile, a combination of social and economic reasons underlies her decision to
engage in factory work. Her younger sister, who dropped out of school because of
financial difficulties in the family often criticized her lifestyle as inconsiderate to the
ced her to seek a job and at that time, factory
work was the only avai
on her parents, particularly since her father does not have a permanent job.
In the case of Parmi who only graduated from elementary school, factory
employment is a means of raising her harga diri (dignity) as a person. For her,
worked as an agricultural laborer in Purworejo, Central Java, could not afford to send
her to school to pursue her studies beyond the elementary level. Parmi was
accepted in Tomenbo in 1978. At the time in the 1970s, the company did not pay
attention to educational background in recruiting workers (see chapter 2).
For Rosa, the reason for joining factory work is more complicated. In the
beginning, she thought that working in the factory would allow her to pursue high
as a printing
company worker was insufficient to support his three children into university. Rosa
127
planned to study in the Open University (Universitas Terbuka).1 Studying in this
university would let her work and study. But, after two years of saving, she had to let
accepted in a university.
Wati, Putri, Diah, Wida, Pipin, and Rosa accepted factory work in TIC as their
first job. Meanwhile, Parmi, Ati, and Nia had experienced being in and out of work
until they got factory employment. Nia was accepted in TIC in 1995. Initially, she
wanted to find a better job, but her senior high school diploma did not give her many
alternatives.
reasons young single women seek factory employment is most related to personal,
social, and economic reasons, and not for contributing to the family income. In fact,
one worker, Nia, still gets financial support from her family. The women workers
whose reason for seeking factory employment is to gain financial autonomy appear
to be more active labor protesters than those whose reason is to support family
economy.
However, after several months of working in the factory, some women also
decide to contribute to the family income. Rosa, Putri, Diah, Parmi, and Wida use a
portion of their salary to support the needs of the family. Rosa has to spare some of
her salary for the medical treatment of her mother who has been sick for years. She
1The University opens classes for government officers, workers, and others. who
cannot attend the class regularly. The studies are mostly held on module basis and consultation with the professor.
128
takes turns with her older brother and younger sister to cover the medical treatment.
Putri, meanwhile, supports her parents who are irregularly employed. However, the
reasons for working in the factory shift to family survival as soon these single
workers get married and have babies. Table 15 summarizes the primary reasons
women give in seeking factory employment.
TABLE 15
REASONS FOR SEEKING FACTORY WORK
Reasons Activists Non-activists To gain financial autonomy 4 - Lack of alternative jobs 2 1 To improve/support family economy - 2 To raise dignity - 1
Total 6 4 Source: In-depth interviews (Sept-Dec 2006).
This discussion of demographic and household characteristics as well as
economic background sets the stage for discussing sources of identity that may
enable (or constrain) people in engaging actively in labor activism.
Sources of Identity of Women Workers
the interplay of macro and
micro factors, which include their sources of identity. In the framework, sources of
identity are divided into ascribed (ethnicity and age), achieved (marital status and
migration status), and the combination of both (gender roles, social networks). Some
sources of identity may matter almost all the time while others rarely do (Charon
1998). These sources of identity will be analyzed separately. However, in practice
they interact with one another in a very dynamic way (Elmhirst 2004; Silvey 2003;
129
Wolf 1999; Smyth and Grijns 1997; Saptari 1995; Bradley 1997 cited in Haralambos
and Holborn 2004). The concept of sources of identity is applied in understanding
decision to be active or inactive labor
protesters.
For the purpose of analysis, this section is divided into women activists and
non-activists. This section attempts to reveal how women activists and non-activists
give importance to their sources of identity.
The non-activists
They see the labor union as a medium to overcome workplace problems and as an
information center like the majority of their fellow women workers. As a workers
representative states:
Mereka kalau ada butuh baru datang ke pengurus kalau engga acuh tak acuh. Mereka nyerahin semuanya ke kita. Tahunya beres, gaji naik segini.
yang engga mendukung mereka aja yang engga mau. (The majority of TIC workers only goes to see the union officers when they need something. Otherwise, they just do not care. They leave everything to us. They only want to know the result, like how much the wage increased. They are difficult to invite to labor meetings because they have too many excuses. I think the problem is not family discouragement. They just do not want to join.)
The four women workers, like the majority of TIC women workers, are reluctant to
join formal forms of labor activism such as labor trainings and labor meetings that
may take their time from families and work. Nevertheless, some women workers still
use covert actions in showing their discontent with management policies and other
workplace problems. How do the four women workers give importance to their
130
sources of identity? How do these sources of identity shape their activism as women
factory workers?
Age, marital status, and gender roles. Since more than two decades ago
(Rowbotham 1972 and Safa 1979 cited in Berger 1983). Labor organizers in TIC
also encounter the same situation. According to Titin, the first secretary of the
Regional Council Leadership in West Java (Dewan Perwakilan Daerah/DPD Jawa
Barat), women worker activists will easily withdraw from labor activism as soon they
get married and have kids. This is different from male workers who are still active in
labor activism even though they are married and have kids. She explains:
Laki-laki lebih mudah diorganisasi. Tidak seperti perempuan setelah menikah, biasanya oleh suaminya tidak diperbolehkan aktif. Belum lagi kalo memiliki anak jadi lebih susah lagi diorganisasi. Banyak kejadian seperti itu kaya di Yuntex dan Fujitex. Sebagian besar kader di SPN seperti itu. (Male workers are easier to organize unlike women who, after getting married, will not join the union anymore because their husbands would not allow them. Also, having kids make women more difficult to organize. There are many cases like that between Yuntex and Fujitex women workers. It happens to most women cadres in SPN.)
This is exemplified by the case of Pipin, a thirty-year-old mother of three. She recalls
that her life has changed since she got married and had children. When she was still
single she used to go out with friends and even travel out of town just to join a labor
demonstration. Now she builds her life around work and family. She says that her
husband discourages her from joining labor union activities that will demand much
time outside the house. Her husband only allows her to get involved in activities that
131
are less time-consuming such as aerobic groups and rotating savings associations,
activities that are women-dominated and usually take place in the community. During
an interview, she admits that this situation often leaves her stressed out but she
cannot do anything about i Jadi istri harus nurut
keinginan suami, lagian anak-anak perlu perhatian. (As a wife I should follow my
Diah shares a similar experience with Pipin. But unlike Pipin who still shows
interest in getting involved in labor activism, Diah fully restrains herself from joining.
She reasons out:
Saya dukung dibelakang tapi saya enggak pernah aktif di SPN, ikut demo. Hanya sebagai anggota. Lagian kalau maintenance susah ikut karena dibutuhkan dan lagi saya punya bayi yang perlu perhatian saya. (I support SPN from behind but I am not active and never take part in strikes. I am just a member. Moreover as a maintenance worker, it is difficult to join [labor activities] because we are needed at work. I also have a baby who still needs my attention.)
After giving birth, she rarely leaves her house for a long time except to work, as
shown by her daily schedule. Diah rises at 5:00 A.M. and spends two-and-a-half-
hours doing household chores (i.e., washing clothes, cleaning the house, buying
food, bathing and feeding the baby) and prepares herself to go to work at 7:30 A.M.
She returns from work at 5:00 P.M. and spends her time with her baby, reading the
She goes to sleep at 9:00 P.M. She works in non-shift
from 8:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M.
recital group (kelompok pengajian) with her ex-high school friends. This activity
never lasts more than two hours. Her case shows that her identity as a mother and a
wife who is responsible for childcare and maintaining domestic chores is salient to
132
her. She restrains herself from engaging in activities that may constrain her from
fulfilling her roles as a fulltime mother and wife. In addition, she cannot afford to
regard her work as secondary since she is the main income earner in the household.
Her husband is unemployed.
Diah
earner does not necessarily mean that division of labor in the household will be
shared equally between its members. Although her husband has more free time, he
rarely does household chores.
The two cases above emphasize the importance of gender roles in a marital
context (wome
As mentioned earlier, more labor activists started to engage in labor activism
when they were still young and single. However, this is not the case with Nana, a
twenty-seven-year-old TIC woman worker. Her single status does not make her
prone to militancy. Although she has fewer domestic chores, she still has familial
economic obligations like supporting five of her younger siblings. Before she
migrated to Bandung City, her parents placed the four siblings under her
responsibility. Therefore, she cannot jeopardize her important income by taking part
in labor activism. In fact, since the factory income is very limited and insufficient to
support her expenses, she uses her spare time to run usaha kecil-kecilan or a small
business that will give her an additional income.
133
Meanwhile, an older woman worker, Parmi, forty-six years old, does not see
the importance of engaging in labor activism especially since she is approaching
retirement age. She does not want to put herself into trouble until her retirement
comes. She justifies it by saying that the labor or
those who have a better education as well as younger people who have less
responsibility to their family. She also adds that women her age will find it difficult to
get another job if the company discharges her because of her involvement in labor
activism. As Parmi narrates:
Kita harus kerja keras dan nurut sama aturan perusahaan. Kalo kita dipecat engga tau lagi kemana harus cari kerja lain. Siapa yang mau nerima yang udah tua kaya kita? Dapatin kerja kan udah susah buat anak muda, apalagi buat kita. Serikat buat yang muda saja. (We [old and married women] have to
know where we would get new jobs. Who will hire old women like us? Getting jobs is already difficult for young people. It would be more difficult for us. Union involvement is only for young people.)
Parmi sees herself as an uneducated woman unlike many young workers in TIC.
Thus, she prefers to delegate labor activism to younger and educated workers.
Moreover, in one interview, she explains that at her age it is better to focus on
religious activities than labor activism. The religious activities such as pengajian will
give her more pahala or merit. In sum, Parmi sees age as an important factor in her
decision not to get involved in labor activism, an arena for young and educated
women workers.
The next section explores other sources of identity ethnicity and social
networks and their interactions with gender ideologies.
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Ethnicity and social networks. The local Sundanese women workers usually
live in the same neighborhood with their kin members. Their exchange networks rely
heavily on local, family-based social networks. This composition of social networks
appears to be a constraint rather than an opportunity for labor activism, as
exemplified by two cases below.
Pipin is a thirty-year-old Sundanese woman worker. She lives in a
neighborhood that is dominated by her relatives. Penduduk di
daerah saya hampir semuanya saudara. Bibi saya tinggalnya seberang rumah,
ketua RT (Rukun Tetangga) juga masih saudara. (My relatives dominate residents in
my neighborhood. My aunt stays just across my house. The neighborhood chief is
still my relative
She gets assistance for childcare and financial support from her relatives.
While she is working, her aunt takes care of her children. Her sisters often give
personal
problems in the workplace or community with her family. Her husband and her
extended families discourage her from joining activities in the labor union, especially
strikes and demonstrations. They cite violent strikes that are often shown on TV as a
reason for preventing her from joining. Instead, they just encourage her to focus on
family matters and women-dominated activities such as arisan. This parallels
personal reserve and refinement (sopan santun), and saw these traits as ones that
Sundanese also see involvement in strikes as inappropriate behavior for women.
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Pip ing on local and family-based networks constrain her
involvement in labor activism, especially when her extended families see labor
activism as not suitable for women.
experience some contradictions in their lives. On the one hand, there is a desire to
express themselves in public arenas. On the other hand, they want to fulfill their
roles as wives and mothers. At the same time they also have to work because their
income is important for family survival. These contradictions have revealed the
complicated relation between married women workers and labor activism.
twenty-seven-year-old Sundanese
mother of a one-year-old daughter. She lives with her parents-in-law who also live in
family always keep their eyes on her. During workdays, she leaves her daughter to
be taken care of by her mother-in-law or her sister who also lives close to her.
Although her husband is unemployed, he rarely does domestic chores. He helps
take care of their baby only once in a while. Diah comments that she cannot
complain since she remains dependent up
and childcare. Thus, although she acts as the main income earner in the family, this
does not afford
in a patrilocal and virilocal system, a woman has a lower status (Chafetz 1980 cited
in Wolf 1991, 129). This condition has constrained her participation in labor union
activities as well as other public activities.
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In sum, gender ideals of feminine propriety and maternal responsibility seem
to dampe -dominated
community, especially when kin members dominate it. The particular gendered
meanings given by kin members as well as domestic partner to labor activism
appear to constrain women workers from acquiring the identity as a woman worker
activist. Women workers find it difficult to decide the identity that they would l ike to
have since they rely heavily on their families for childcare, financial support, and so
on. In other words, although these women have strong networks, their networks are
not supportive of labor activism. Nevertheless, some women workers are able to
challenge these constraints and to prove that being a mother and a wife is not an
impediment from being a labor activist. This is explored in the next section.
The activists
Out of more than six hundred TIC women workers, only six have been
actively involved in labor activism. Five of them, young labor organizers, are below
thirty years old or young women workers. Of these five young labor organizers, three
hold positions in the union organizational structure (i.e., one is a vice-president of
DPC and two are vice-presidents of the union at the enterprise level). The other two
the vice-presidents of SPN in
logical since young women far outnumber older women in TIC employment.
Despite their subordinate position in the workplace, these women are still
able to assert their identity as a woman worker activist. They see disadvantages in
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the workplace as a source of opportunity for labor activism that in turn allow them to
engage more fully in labor activism compared to majority of TIC women workers.
Age, marital status, and gender roles. Of six women worker activists, five
started their activism in the labor union at a young age. They are eager to join labor
union activities compared to the older ones. Moreover, for them, participating in
formal organizations such as a labor union is not a new experience since they were
already active in school organizations. Some of them are also still active in youth
organizations in the community as well as in religious organizations.
However, Ati and Titin are exceptions. They only got involved in labor
activism when they were quite old and already married with children. Titin, an ex-
union leader of SPN in TIC, sees that age does not limit her involvement in labor
activism. In 1988, when she was thirty-two years old, she was elected as a union
leader. She held this position until 2001. Now, at the age of fifty, she is still active in
labor organizing. In 2004, she was elected as the first secretary of Regional Council
Leadership in West Java (Dewan Perwakilan Daerah/DPD Jawa Barat). Titin has
become a role model for female labor activists in TIC. The women workers in TIC
are impressed by her leadership that shows an ability to balance family, work, and
fearless labor activism (see chapter 3). However, she did encounter difficulties in
maintaining her roles in these three spheres. In one interview, she recalls:
I only started to get involved in labor activism when my second son was five years old. It was in 1985. I think he was big enough to be left with his father. But one time, my husband was so mad at me because I went home at 2:00 A.M. about time (jangan lupa waktu). The biggest obstacle was to manage my time for family and organization (labor union). Household sustainability is still important. I shared domestic chores with my husband. In the morning, I
138
cooked and took care of the children and my husband was the one who washed the dishes. When we went to work, my neighbor would take care of the kids. If I would go to Bina Karya, a labor NGO, my husband would get the kids and heat the food. In the beginning, we often had arguments. He said,
realized that labor organizing is my hobby.
Now that the children are already adults and she has retired from work the first son
just got married and the second is completing his studies in a university Titin has
more time for herself as well as for labor activism. She spends most of her time for
labor organizing activities such as training union members or giving legal aid for
those who are having problems at
Pardi often accompanies her to the union office, labor trainings and meetings, and
even strikes.
Titin has a similar experience with Nia. Although Nia is younger than Titin,
she also started to engage in labor activism when she married and had a child. But
unlike Titin, Nia does not need to be burdened by childcare. She sent her four-year-
old son to be taken care of by her parents in Kebumen, Central Java. Moreover,
since her husband is irregularly employed, the household survival relies solely on
sehold.
This can be gleaned from the division of work and decision
household below.
Nia and her husband, Didi, agreed to divide household chores. During the morning shift, Nia wakes up at 5:00 A.M. in order to catch 5:30 A.M. factory bus which takes her to the workplace. Her work starts at 6:00 A.M. and ends at 2:00 P.M. While waiting for the factory bus going home, she goes to the
activities. At home, she usually chats with her friends or neighbors. She rarely cooks, so she buys food for dinner. Her household chores include cleaning the house, washing the dishes, and ironing the clothes. Meanwhile, Didi does
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laundry and cleans the house. The important household decision-making processes such as child education and room renting are decided by Nia. She
b ontrol over income and decision making puts Nia in a higher position, which in turn, allows her to be active in labor activism. Didi rarely complains. But when Nia is too busy with her union activities, Didi will mo
states, egalitarian
shift in gender relations at the household level by providing women the bargaining
chips with which to assert power in household decision-making processes; however,
this potential for positive change is not always realized.
Meanwhile, Wati, Wida, and Putri began participating in labor activism when
they were still single. Their composition of social networks allows them to stay as
labor activists even when they got married and had children. Some studies show that
single women workers are relatively easier to organize than the married ones (see
single women workers are subjected to fewer household chores and have more
control over their earnings. Their access to an independent wage may allow them to
engage in any activity, especially when they have a relatively low regular familial
economic obligation as described in the case of Rosa below.
The family finance mostly relies on the income of Rosa father who also works as a factory worker. Besides, her two married siblings live separately and independently in other regions. Rosa can use her salary for her own expenses. Her income is used to buy jewelry, clothes, cell phone, and recently she just bought a motorbike on credit. Moreover, Rosa is also able to save some of her salary. Although Rosa is dependent upon her family for free lodging, she has autonomy to decide her activities outside the house,
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including participating in trade union activities. She often leaves the house for labor trainings or labor meetings. She explains that her father supports her activities as long as she can take care of herself and does not engage in any violent actions. In fact, her father is the one who usually gives her a ride to labor meetings, especially when the meeting takes place at night. She has tried to be more independent, thus, she bought a motorbike to make her movement easier.
fewer familial economic obligations.
As mentioned earlier, a few women workers in TIC show that a married status
and having children do not fully restrain their involvement in labor activism as shown
Putri has been involved in organization activities since she was in high school. She is also active in a church organization and an ethnic-based organization (Ikatan Muda Mudi Batak/IMB or The Association of Youth
her in the organizational structure of SPN in TIC. She admits that she cannot fully withdraw from labor union activities even though she has a baby who needs to be taken care of. She tries to balance her time for family, work, and labor activism. After giving birth, however, she placed labor activism after
activism as long as it is held during work hours so I can use my spare time for
to go out of the city or to stay overnight, which contradicts her goal to be a labor officer in the Branch Council Leadership (Dewan Perwakilan Cabang).
labor activism as long as she does not neglect her family duties. According to Putri,
her husband cannot stop her because even when they were still dating, Putri already
explained to him that she likes to join organization activities. Nevertheless, the case
of Putri shows that her identity as a woman labor activist is often incompatible with
her identity as a responsible mother.
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Titin also shares some similarities with Putri. But in the case of Titin, she
placed labor activism over family. Therefore, the relationship between Titin and her
husband was colored by quarrels. Titin shows her ability to decide the identity that
she would like to have despite family constraints.
Wati shares some similarities with Putri. Wati has also been active in
organization activities since she was in high school. On one occasion, she admitted
that her experience in a high school organization has provided her some abilities that
can be used in labor union. Wati also explains that her husband rarely complains
about her participation in labor activism. When labor activism demands a lot of her
time, she tries to make her husband understand (kasih pengertian). She says:
Setiap pulang dari pertemuan saya cerita sama suami. Kadang saya kenalkan dia sama temen-temen khususnya yang laki-laki biar dia engga mikir macam-macam. (Every time I return from a labor meeting, I share it with my husband. Sometimes, I also introduce him to my friends [in union], especially males so he will not think I am looking for another man.)
Introducing partners to other labor organizers is also a way of addressing a rumor
about labor trainings and labor meetings as a place for having an affair among labor
activists. Nevertheless, like Titin, the relationship between Wati and her husband is
still colored by quarrels.
The cases of married women worker activists suggests that support from
husbands and family members is crucial in their formation as woman worker
activists. Nevertheless, single women workers with fewer kinship obligations are
more available for labor activism than the married ones who are burdened by family
duties (Andriyani 1996).
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Ethnicity, migration status, and social networks. From the six women worker
activists, three are Sundanese. The other three are non-Sundanese: two are
Javanese, one is Batak. This may suggest that there are no significant differences
between Sundanese and non-Sundanese women workers in TIC in terms of the
degree of participation in labor activism. In other words, from the six women cases
However, ethnicity appears to be more important when we analyze it in connection
with gender and social networks as shown earlier in the discussion of non-activists.
For the purpose of analysis, this next section is divided into the Sundanese women
worker activists (local and nonlocal origins/migrant and commuter) and the non-
Sundanese (migrants).
The Sundanese women worker activists. Three Sundanese women worker
activists in TIC have been able to challenge the idea that labor activism is
inappropriate for Sundanese women. One significant factor that contributes to this
difference is the composition of social networks that relate to migration status and
rules of residence. Wati, Wida, and Ati live separately from their parents (neolocal).
Although they live in a Sundanese-dominated community, they do not live in the
same neighborhood with their kin members, except Wida. In addition, two of them
are from nonlocal origins: Ati is a commuter and Wati is a Sundanese migrant. Their
exchange networks are more spatially extensive than those who are relatively
embedded in local, family-based social relations. Differences in the compositions of
social networks in which these women are embedded and the gendered meanings
people have ascribed to these differences have played roles in producing different
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). Therefore, family networks
appear to have a distinctive influence in labor activism. The family networks can
Cases below show that strong social networks with family members,
neighbors, friends, and work colleagues, bonding social capital, appear to have a
positive effect on women worker activists. Ati, a forty-five-year-old Sundanese
mother of three, gets assistance in childcare from her husband who works as a
newspaper seller. Sometimes, a neighbor also helps to watch the children. For
cooperative in the workplace. Sometimes, she also borrows money from her
colleagues to cover emergency expenses such as school books.
Meanwhile, Wati and Wida admit that they only borrow money from the
cooperative in the workplace. Unlike Wida who has no children yet, Wati gets
support from her younger sister, mother, and her mother-in-law for childcare. But
most of the time, she leaves her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter with her mother-
in-law whose home is an hour away by car. She meets her daughter during
weekends. Therefore, Wati is more flexible than other married women workers.
For savings, these three women join the arisan in the workplace. In addition,
they prefer to run to their friends either in or outside the workplace for coping with
their personal affairs. Do these Sundanese women worker activists share similarities
or differences with their non-Sundanese women counterparts in terms of ethnicity,
gender ideologies, and composition of social networks?
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The non-Sundanese women worker activists. Ujungberung, like other
industrial areas, is marked by the influx of migrants, including the non-Sundanese. In
the case of TIC, migrants dominate the workforce and many of them are the
Javanese. As mentioned in chapter 2, Javanese workers, who are known to be
industrious and compliant workers, are treated differently from the non-Javanese,
particularly the local Sundanese. The Javanese workers, both male and female,
easily get promoted.
However, the assumption that the Javanese are compliant workers is
challenged by the presence of two Javanese women worker activists in TIC. Both
representatives. One of them, Rosa, is known as a
bright young woman. She does not hesitate to argue with her supervisor if she finds
that her supervisor is incorrect in giving work instructions. Thus, many young women
workers in her department line have relied on her in addressing work problems. Who
is Rosa and why is she different from the majority of Javanese workers in TIC? The
profile of Rosa below serves to answer this question.
Rosa was born in Purwokerto, Central Java in 1977. She has two siblings, an
older brother and a younger sister. Her family migrated to Bandung City in the 1980s
in order to have
her school years in Bandung and lives in a Sundanese-dominated community.
Although she stayed in this community for years, she does not have a close
relationship with her neighbors. She only knows her closest neighbors and prefers to
interact with her colleagues in the factory. Moreover, she veers away from the
Sundanese stereotype of giving importance to a carefree and consumptive lifestyle.
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Instead, her parents taught her to live thriftily and to commit herself to study as well
as to work. According to her, this is a part of survival in a foreign area since they live
far from their extended family. In high school, Rosa was known as a bright student in
her class. She was also active in religious-based organizations. In fact, soon after
she graduated from high school, she got involved in a radical religious movement.
She wore a full veil, from head to toe, and only showed her eyes. However, her
involvement only lasted for a few months because she realized that this movement
was unsuitable for her. Recently, she found a religious organization that fits in with
her belief. Every month, she gives part of her salary to this organization.
Rosa has worked in TIC since 1997. It was only in 2004, however, when she
started getting involved in labor union activities. Although she remains active in labor
activism, she still gives priority to her factory work. She does not want to leave her
job too long to join union activities. Aside from the need for income, she also does
not want to get criticisms from her supervisor who often looks for her mistakes.
During a labor s Aku udah terlalu sering absen, mana aku harus
bayar cicilan motor dan kadang atasan suka ngomel. (I take unpaid leave too often
yet I have to pay for my motorbike and so sometimes my boss criticizes my
absence. ) This puts her as one among a few labor activists who is able to balance
labor activism and work. Many labor activists have failed to maintain their work and
ended up resigning from the factory.
Moreover, Rosa has full control over her income and has fewer familial
economic obligations which make it easier for her to be active in labor activism. In
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this sense, factory work seems to strengthen female autonomy (see also Wolf 1991)
which in turn encourages women workers to be labor activists.
Another example is Nia, a twenty-nine-year-old Javanese mother of a seven-
year-old son. She migrated to Bandung City in 1994 and lived with her relative for a
year. Nia has three siblings. Two of them lived with her parents in Kebumen, Central
Java and another one works in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, as the personal
driver of a well-known businessman. Her father is a pedicab driver and her mother is
a caretaker. She has worked in TIC since 1995. She met her husband, a Sundanese
man, and got married in her hometown in 1997. A year later, she gave birth. Nia has
full control over her sexuality, like in deciding her life partner and deciding when to
be pregnant. She also has control over her income. Her parents have never set her
up with someone or have asked her for money. In fact, her parents still support her
financially. One thing that her parents ask from her is to send her son to live with
them. They question the financial ability of Nia and her husband to raise the child.
Especially, her husband, Didi, who only works on a piece-rate basis2 in a small
knitting factory that has no regular production. Sometimes he needs to wait for
months until the factory receives a new order. During an interview, it had been two
months since the factory gave him a job. Moreover, Didi also often keeps his limited
salary for himself, for playing badminton and buying cigarettes. He has to contribute
2Hours of labor depend on whether the set targets are reached.
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Even though she already sent her son to live with her parents, she still needs
to get additional income. She tried to sell hot snacks which she prepared before
going to work in the factory. She woke up very early to make fresh snacks with her
small and did not equal her efforts the house was always messed up and she felt
tired easily she stopped the business. Now, she sells instant noodles. She puts the
get it easily and put the money in it. Nia and Didi rent a room that is only a ten-
minute ride from the factory.
Nia relies on her parents for childcare and the education fee of her son.
Sometimes, she also borrows money from her parents or her younger brother who
works in Jakarta. But for house payment, she usually gets a loan from a cooperative
in the workplace. One time, she also borrowed money from the TIC manager. She
recalls:
Saya sampai memohon dan nangis biar dapat pinjaman dari dia. Saya ingin pinjam 1 juta tapi dia hanya kasih 600 ribu. Saya pakai buat bayar sewa. (I even had to beg and cry just to get a loan from him. I wanted to borrow Rp 1 million but he only gave me Rp 600,000. I used the money to pay my rent.)
If she runs out of money for daily expenses she will borrow it from her friends. For
savings, she joins arisan that requires her to pay Rp 200,000/month. Nia rarely talks
with her husband or parents about her personal problems. She shares it with friends.
She explains:
Susah ngomong sama suami tentang kerjaan atau masalah lain, akhirnya malah berantem. Saya juga engga pengen kasih tahu orang tua kalo saya
148
lagi ada masalah. Saya engga mau bebanin mereka dengan masalah saya. Mendingan ngomong sama temen-temen. Mereka nolong banget deh. (I find it difficult to talk about work or other things to my husband. We often end up quarrelingwant to burden them with my problems. So I am better sharing it with my friends. They are very helpful.) This is also the case for Rosa. She does not want to burden her parents with
personal problems. Thus, she shares the problems with her friends in the factory.
Unlike Nia, money is not an issue for Rosa since she has fewer expenses. In fact,
she is the one who often lends money to her friends. However, she still takes
advantage of the benefits of joining the TIC cooperative that pays for her motorbike
downpayment. Like Rosa, Putri rarely borrows money from the cooperative. She
joins the arisan in the church and kin-based associations. She spends about US$25
per month to pay arisan. As with Ati and Wati, Rosa, Putri, and Nia also show more
extensive spatial social networks. It seems that the women workers who have more
extensive social networks, not only from family but also from friends, colleagues as
well as organizations inside or outside the workplace, are likely to join labor activism,
despite their ethnic background.
Synthesis and Discussion
The explanations above highlight how sources of identity affect the formation
Parmi, an older woman, for instance, shows the importance of age in her decision
not to get involved in labor activism that is usually seen as a venue for young women
workers. Meanwhile in the case of Nana, age and marital status are less important
than gender roles. Her young and single status does not automatically make her
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liable to militancy. Her parental influence and desire to be a dutiful (berbakti)
daughter mitigate her interest in joining labor activism. In other words, being young
and single is insufficient to develop class consciousness. For her, her identity as a
dutiful and responsible daughter appears to be more important than being a labor
work role and family role than to labor activism.
Nevertheless having problems with a supervisor and a group leader which
pay more attention to labor activism. The identity as a labor activist or non-activist, in
this sense, is activated in certain situations, while the identity as a responsible
engage (or not engage) in labor activism.
In Rosa her identity as a young single woman worker with fewer
kinship obligations developed in her a stronger commitment to labor activism.
However, she decided to lessen her participation in labor activism if it takes too
much time away from work that, in turn, may get her into trouble at work and
decrease her income.
I
age (young) and marital status (single) are not significant unless analyzed in
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In other cases, a combination of marital status and gender roles is crucial in
pin and Diah,
these two sources of identity appear to be a constraint for labor activism. They
attend to their roles as responsible mothers and dutiful wives. Moreover, their social
networks, which rely on local, family-based social networks, constrain instead of
open up opportunities for labor activism. Local, family-based social relations where
Sundanese women are embedded combined with the gendered meanings that are
attached to these relations may dampen their participation in labor activism (Silvey
2003). In other words, kin-based networks appear to place a certain moral restriction
to the movement of women workers (Saptari and Elmhirst 2004).
Meanwhile, other married women workers with children are able to assert
their identity as labor activists. These women worker activists are able to intensify
their social networks in order to lessen their family duties, which in turn promote their
participation in labor activism. Here, strong social networks allow them to acquire the
identity that they would like to have as labor activists. Most of these women are from
nonlocal origins (commuters and migrants), either Sundanese or the non-
Sundanese, and live far from their extended families. This contributes to the
compositions of their exchange networks that are more spatially extensive.
In sum, social networks in relation with migration status, ethnicity, and
gender, have a distinctive influence on labor activism. This may enable or constrain
Silvey 2003). In addition, the rules of residence are also important in mediating
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cases have shown that women who become main income earners and live
separately (neolocal) have higher positions in decision making, both in the
household and in public activities, than those who live with the husban
(virilocal s status in the patrilocal and virilocal system is lower than in the
matrilocal or neolocal system (Chafetz 1980 cited in Wolf 1991, 129). This is
exemplified by the cases of Nia (neolocal) and Diah (virilocal). These patterns thus
suggest that women who break free from traditional gender norms are more likely to
engage in labor activism. Gender, in this sense, remains the dominant source of
identity.
Moreover, some cases also show the importance of social personal context in
fostering activism. Sources of
activism if they are accompanied by context. For instance, marriage and motherhood
would normally be a hindrance to activism, yet given a supportive family and spouse,
a woman worker can be active (see cases of Titin, Putri, Wati, Nia, and Ati).
opportunity to engage in activism than those who are financially dependent on their
families or spouses.
In addition, women workers, both the activists and the non-activists, are also
economically oriented organizations (e.g., rotating savings associations and
cooperatives). The non-activists may not participate actively in the trade union but
they engage in other organizations as a way of expressing themselves or fulfilling
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participation in the trade union and other social organizations in understanding
These organizations can be used to compensate for lack of income due to
participation in labor union activities held outside work hours.
The next section presents the summary of the findings of the study and
assesses the analytical framework.
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CHAPTER 5
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This case study of the sources of labor activism focused on women workers
in TIC, a Japanese-owned spinning mill, in Ujungberung, Bandung City, an area of
low labor unrest. It attempted to examine the structural conditions in both the factory
activism; the nature of labor activism in Ujungberung, particularly in TIC; women
which
identities are mobilized. The data for this study were gathered from the life histories
of ten TIC women workers who are members of SPN and one former leader of SPN
at the enterprise level. Of the ten women workers, six are labor activists and the
remaining four are non-activists.
Taking into consideration literature that shows how macro-level factors such
as state labor policies and the roles of labor union and NGOs contribute to the
gender, age, ethnicity, marital status, migration status, and social networks as key
level, these factors can be seen as sources of identity. According to Peter Burke
(1980 cite
for labor activism. Thus, an understanding of identity among women workers, which
includes their reason for getting involved (or uninvolved) in labor activism, is very
154
important in
(2000) argument that emphasized the combination of structural constraint and
individual agency in the formation of identity was applied in examining the extent to
which sources of identity
This chapter summarizes the main findings and issues raised throughout the
conclusions. Based on these discussions, this study
the factories and
increasing the level of women participation in labor activism as well as topic for
Issues and Research Findings
Previous labor studies on women have mentioned how gender and its relation to
other factors such as migration status contribute to the complexity of understanding
(or lack of it)
as daughters) and their gender subordination at home manifestations of gender
inequality
involvement in labor activism. However, the interaction of gender with other factors
such as age, ethnicity, marital and migration status, and compositions of social
networks are also very important. These factors have potential implications on
interactions with other sources of identity are also very important (Bradley 1997 cited
in Haralambos and Holborn 2004).
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Structural constraints in the workplace and community that are more
pronounced in a low militancy area are insufficient, however, to explain variations in
the degree of militancy among women workers. Even within structural constraints,
some women workers can shape their identities as labor activists through the taking
of collective and individual actions. They also reshape, to some extent, social
structures that limit them (Woodward 2000).
Subordination of women in the workplace
The research site, in the early 1970s when factories started to operate,
absorbed local residents and migrants as their employees. The proportion of men
and women was also relatively equal. This situation, however, changed as these
factories shifted to export production. These factories preferred to hire young and
single women, particularly Javanese women migrants, who were seen as more
dexterous and obedient than their non-Javanese counterparts. This supported
studies on industrialization, global factories, and female factory labor in Asia in the
Saptari 1995, 97). Thus, of more than seven hundred workers in TIC in 2006, 80
percent were women and more than 50 percent of them were migrant women. The
majority of workers in TIC were senior high school diploma holders. Table 16
summarizes the characteris
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TABLE 16
Characteristics Workforce
Sex Female: 80%, Male: 20% Marital status Married: 80%, Single: 20% Migration status Migrant: 60%, Local: 40%
Education Senior high school: 60% Elementary school: 20% Junior high school: 15% College/University: 5%
Age group 25-48 years old Work period Shortest: 6 years: Longest: more than 30 years Working status Permanent workers Dominant ethnic group Sundanese and Javanese
Source: The profile of Tomenbo Corporation (2006).
Women workers in TIC, despite their varying ethnic backgrounds and places
of origin, dominated the position of machine tenders and operatives while men were
hired as machine technicians and auxiliary workers. In addition, although women
workers have been de
beyond the lowest supervisory level (group leaders or line leaders) a position that
differed little from production workers. In other words, gender-segregated job
allocation has produced gender hierarchy in authority relations. All women were
under the authority of male supervisors and managers. Furthermore, the exclusion of
women from the higher skilled and higher hierarchical structure contributed to their
low wages. The women workers were also excluded from getting family allowance,
from pursuing higher education with the
sense, factory employment perpetuates gender inequalities and women workers are
subjected to patriarchal domination as well as capitalist domination (Lee 1993).
157
In the case of TIC, gender and ethnicity shaped the ways in which managers
various ethnic backgrounds such as Sundanese, Javanese, and Batak but the
company preferred the Javanese workers and promoted them faster than their non-
position and Javanese men could achieve higher positions as supervisors and
managers, non-Javanese particularly local-inhabitants (Sundanese), were rarely
promoted. The Javanese who held higher positions were less likely to join labor
activism than those who did not hold any position in the factory. In addition, work
positions are also important in understanding the degree of militancy among factory
workers. Lower rank workers are more likely to join activism than those in higher
ranks.
Under the subordinate position, female workers do not always remain passive
and accepting of everything that management dictates. They develop certain ways of
showing their discontent and of lessening stressful work. In fact, a few women
workers are able to move from covert actions toward overt actions such as bipartite
or bilateral negotiations, labor trainings, and strikes. These women workers are able
to challenge the idea that the labor union is a male-dominated organization. This will
be reviewed in the next section.
158
Labor activism Industrial areas in West Java have often been described as seats of labor
unrest. However, this is not the case for the Ujungberung industrial area. Some
factors contribute to the relatively stable condition of this area, as explained below.
High versus low militancy area. The Ujungberung industrial area has a low
level of militancy compared to other industrial areas in West Java such as
Tangerang. While labor activism in Tangerang is colored by strikes, Ujungberung
has remained calm. For the past five years only a few strikes took place in
Ujungberung. Moreover, these strikes only involved hundreds or even fewer workers
in a short period and never involved many factories within close vicinity. Factors
such as strong state repression, higher real wages, and the lack of NGOs in
Bandung City, where Ujungberung is located, appear to contribute to the low level of
labor unrest in this area. At the local level, the nature of Sundanese-dominated
communities that give high value to stability and unity is also an important factor in
In the case of TIC, although the level of labor unrest at the enterprise level is
low, workers find it relatively easier to get involved in public demonstrations or rallies
to demand an annual wage increase that equals KHL and to demand a fair state
labor policy. Under these issues, TIC women workers are mobilized in public spaces.
Public demonstrations s
women workers to engage in public demonstrations. First is the ability of the union to
provide the needs of the workers during the demonstrations. As Rutten (2000, 217)
159
to
activism, the more workers are likely to engage in it. Second is the lenient attitude of
the company toward the participation of workers in public labor protests. Since the
company accepts this kind of activism, the workers are more liable to engage in it. In
other words, the workers are more likely to engage in labor activism that will not
jeopardize their sole source of income. Therefore, labor activism also entails the
need for survival. Third is related to the ways in which workers give a particular
meaning to a public demonstration. Demonstrations that often take place in public
spaces such as the center of provincial government and the capital city of Jakarta
recreation or for leaving routinary jobs for a while. During public demonstrations,
workers gather with workers from other factories, chat with their fellow workers about
family issues, financial problems, and so on. This shows another dimension of
strikes that is rarely seen in the study of labor activism (except Saptari forthcoming).
In this sense, participation in strikes and demonstrations cannot be regarded as a
direct manifestation of class consciousness. Even within strikes and demonstrations
identify themselves more with their gender (see Saptari forthcoming). These women
prefer to gather outside labor protesters and keep calm.
160
Labor activism at the enterprise level. Covert and overt actions comprise the
nature of labor activism in TIC. Over the past few years, overt and organized actions
in TIC have largely been expressed by negotiation. Although labor organizers are
often dissatisfied with the result of negotiations, they discourage strikes.
Within the context of global and labor market instability, staging a stoppage
strike in the workplace is seen as the last option because it may endanger the
and can be used by the company as a reason to displace workers and to transfer its
operation to another area with a much lower level of labor unrest. Thus, labor union
organizers like SPN prefer negotiation instead of strikes in pushing for their interests
in the workplace. This negotiation strategy of SPN appears to produce a kind of
militancy among its members.
Another way to show resentment toward unfair treatment in the workplace is
through covert actions on the factory floor. Gossip, work slowdowns, avoidance, and
other actions are very common practices and represent the act of resistance on the
factory floor. Many women workers take part in covert actions because these incur
less risk than overt ones. Their subordinate position in the workplace has made it
necessary for them to be more creative in covertly addressing their interests or
resentments, particularly when the formal channel (labor union) is unable to address
their issues. For instance, problems between operators (women workers) and group
leaders are considered as personal issues rather than union issues. And personal
issues should be resolved individually. At the same time
161
position makes them less likely to directly challenge their immediate supervisors,
back or to avoid conversation unless the group leader talks to them first. In sum,
covert actions dominate the factory floor. Men as well as women engage in covert
actions and share positions in the organizational structure of SPN at the enterprise
level. However emain unaddressed.
. Some feminists see unions as patriarchal
institutions (Walby 1986 cited in Haralambos and Holborn 2004, 134). This study
shows that the union is dominated by men who tend to act in the interests of male
still under-represented in collective negotiations with the management. Male workers
have dominated top positions in the labor unions, from the national to the enterprise
level. In the case of TIC, more women workers are elected to be labor officers. But
they are still not the majority. These women, however, have not used their position
seriously.
The lack of participation of women in the union may not bring up some vital
stimulate in the future
greater involvement of women in labor union activities. This is exemplified by Titin, a
former union leader in TIC, who became a role model for many women workers in
their company.
162
some women workers encounter difficulties in managing their job as union officers
ies are often constrained by family
family conflict as exemplified by Titi
activism, particularly married women workers, support from spouse and family is
s activism, explanations must not
only look at the actions of organizers or conditions where workers are mobilized, but
also the women themselves, the social structures in which they are embedded, and
the ways they interpret conditions surrounding them.
Of more than six hundred women workers in TIC, only six are actively
involved in labor activism, both in covert and overt actions. These six women
workers, to some extent, have been able to challenge structural conditions that often
limit their participation in labor activism. Although they are positioned lower in the
hierarchical structure of the company, they are still able to achieve high positions in
labor union structures and play important roles on the factory floor. In order to
understand their reasons for getting involved (or uninvolved) in labor activism, this
163
Traditional gender roles: A constraint for women work . The ten
women workers and the former female union leader studied saw gender roles as a
dutiful daughter, a responsible mother, and a wife as constraints to their involvement
ion at home
home after work to care for their children and to do other household chores. The
married women workers do household chores more than the single women.
One case, however, showed that being single and subject to fewer household
chores does not release her from kinship obligations to give financial support to her
appeared to limit her involvement in labor union activities that may endanger her
source of income in the factory. Meanwhile, another young and single woman worker
with fewer familial economic obligations showed a stronger commitment to labor
activism. This woman is very active in labor union activities held inside or outside the
workplace.
Among the ten women workers, only one considers age as an important
factor in her decision not to engage in labor activism. For her, only younger people
with better education are appropriate for labor activism. Besides, she believes
younger people have less responsibility to their family. Nevertheless, two older
women workers have challenged the idea that labor activism belongs to the younger
generation. At ages forty to fifty years old, these women are still active in the labor
164
regional level. Older women might normally decline to join strikes, but given a
network that is encouraging and children who are older, age will not matter.
These findings suggest that gender roles are more crucial in understanding
the degree of militancy among women workers than age and marital status. Even
women worker activists, especially married ones, consider gender roles as an
obstacle for them in asserting their identities as women worker activists. Rowbotham
relationship of the woman to reproduction and consumption within the family
mediated her relationship to commodity production, thereby making women less
-time wage earners, they continue to assume
responsibility for household tasks. Some cases, however, show that the context or
lso important. For example, although marriage
would tend to limit activism in women, given a supportive family and husband,
women workers can take part in labor activism.
Enabling and constraining effects of social networks. Among six women
worker activists who are burdened by family duties, three of them are able to use
their social networks to ease their domestic duties as well as social and economic
problems. Meanwhile, two other women workers experienced social networks as a
constraint rather than an opportunity for labor activism. These two women reside
within the vicinity of their kin members in a Sundanese-dominated community. They
are embedded in local, family-based social relations and rely heavily on their family
networks. The combination of gender ideologies of Sundanese people who
165
their social networks restrain these two Sundanese women from taking part in labor
that sees the importance of
take into account differences in ethnicity and gender ideologies within these
networks.
Meanwhile, of six women activists, only one is a local inhabitant, the other
five are from nonlocal origins. Four are migrants (one is Sundanese, two are
Javanese, and one is Batak). The remaining one is a commuter who is Sundanese.
These six women workers do not give importance to their ethnicity in relation to labor
activism.
The women have spatially extensive social networks, except for one local
inhabitant (Wida). They do not only rely on family, but also on friends, neighbors,
and even organizations inside or outside the workplace in order to overcome or
lessen workplace problems. In the case of Wida, a better economic condition and
the absence of children make her more independent and more liable to participate in
labor activism than other locals.
These findings show that social networks enable or constrain labor activism.
Migration status, ethnicity, and gender ideology appear to shape the compositions of
social networks. Local Sundanese who rely on local, family-based social networks
are less likely to join labor activism than migrant Sundanese and non-Sundanese
who have spatially extensive social networks. Moreover, gender ideologies attached
166
to local, family-based social relations embedded in Sundanese culture appear to
contribute to the low participation of local Sundanese women in labor activism.
control over income and their power in the households to determine their
engagement in labor activism. Some cases show that women who are main income
earners and live separately from relatives (neolocal) have a relatively higher position
in the household decision making and public activities than those who live with their
lower than in a matrilocal or neolocal system (Chafetz 1980 cited in Wolf 1991, 129).
Conclusions
The results of the study suggest the following conclusions regarding forms of
labor activism, w
organizations, and the dominant sources of identity of women workers.
Forms of labor activism
Broadening the definition of labor activism beyond conflict-oriented strategies
enables one to capture the more collaborative strategies of dialogue and covert
forms of action that actually dominate the factory floor. Moreover, the study revealed
that the nature of labor activism is dynamic and changeable depending on the
context. Within the context of global and labor market instability, which is seen
through factory closing and workforce downsizings, collaborative and covert forms of
action appear to be rational strategies for workers in expressing disappointment with
167
company policies without putting their jobs at risk. The covert actions are common
among women workers in TIC. This suggests that women workers get involved in
labor activism as long as it does not jeopardize their sole source of income. It can
thus be concluded that labor activism comes after the need for survival.
If the study follows the standard definition of militancy which implies
aggressive actions and conflict-oriented strategies, it can be concluded that women
workers in TIC, in general, have a low level of militancy. But since the study has
applied a broader definition of labor activism, findings have revealed that women
workers in TIC have shown some degree of militancy. Some women workers,
however, have shown a higher degree of militancy that is indicated by their
willingness to join public demonstrations. This suggests that women workers tend to
be more active in short-term forms of protest than in time-consuming activities such
as day-to-day trade union activities (Berger 1983).
and changed through social interaction (Charon 1998). Labor union officers tend to
maintain their identities as labor activists than regular union members. However,
within certain circumstances, their identities as labor activists can alter. Meanwhile,
those who consider themselves as non-activists or regular members will be more
active in labor activism while having problems with the management. In this sense,
identities are not fixed. They are responsive to the social context (Burke 1980 cited
in Hogg, Terry, and White 1995).
168
Aside from that, women workers also participate in religious groups such as
holy
(e.g., rotating savings associations and cooperatives). These activities dominate the
free time of women industrial workers. The involvement in many organizations may
promote or Tennessee
(may) compete with one another for the time and allegiances of individuals and in so
doing, constrain indi
attention that most unions have devoted to specifically female issues, a clear
distinction must be made when discussing women in trade union participation and
other expressions of class consciousness (see Berger 1983).
The dominant sources of identity
Variations in the degree of militancy among women workers in a low industrial
area highlight the point that wome
structurally determined. Differences in the ways women give importance to their
gender roles and the compositions of their social networks have played key roles in
workers. Therefore, it has been necessary to loo
involvement in labor activism (see also Silvey 2003).
Given structural constraints in the workplace, community, and family, a few
women workers are able to assert their identities as women worker activists.
169
Contexts such as financial autonomy, family and spouse support, and the erosion of
workplace as daughter, wife, mother, and worker that, in turn, enable them to get
involved actively in labor activism. Participation in labor activism makes way for more
equal gender relations in the union as well as in the workplace. Within family
structures, these women are also able to maneuver the structures by sharing their
family duties with their spouses or family members.
Gender roles in marriage context and social networks are very crucial in
ss
so. In other words, this study shows that from several sources of identity as shown in
the analytical framework, gender remains as the dominant source of identity. It
supports the feminist idea that sees gender as the principal source of identity and
ch
gender has lost its importance as a source of identity (Walter 1998 cited in
Haralambos and Holborn 2004, 139). Natasha Walter, proponent of the new
feminism, believes that women share common problems. She explains that
inequality at work and responsibility for childcare and domestic work are areas in
which women are most disadvantaged. However, the connection of gender with
Haralambos and Holborn 2004, 829). For instance, the interplay between gender
170
roles and social networks affect women workers differently. Women worker activists
are able to use strong extensive social networks to cope with heavy family
responsibilities that relate to their gender roles. Meanwhile, for the non-activists, the
combination of gender roles, strong family social networks (local and family-based
networks), and gender ideologies that are attached to these networks have pushed
them away from labor activism. These compositions of social networks are somehow
shaped by the migration status of the workers. But being migrants or non-migrants is
not important in their decision to be labor activists.
Sources of identity, while important, must complement the personal and
social contexts of a person in order to foster labor activism. Social and personal
contexts such as support from family, spouses, financial autonomy, and anything
else that enable women to free themselves from gender restrictions, are also very
important. The source of identity itself will not explain a whole lot of variance in
activism. These supportive contexts release women from traditional gender
obligations which in turn allow women to work for goals larger than the family and
community interests. The findings are used to assess the framework of this study as
shown in figure 9.
Recommendations
The recommendations are divided into two parts. The first part focuses on
practical recommendations for labor unions whose members are dominated by
women workers. The second part focuses on academic recommendations for further
studies.
171
Practical recommendations
This study has shown that women are under-
from national to enterprise level. This may contribute to the inability of labor unions
important positions in the labor union has several advantages: (1) this may affect
policies concerning childcare, pay equity, and others; and (2) this may stimulate
greater involvement by rank-and-file women (Melcher et al. 1992). Thus, labor
unions need to develop strategies that may spur women to participate actively in
labor activism.
The low participation levels among women workers in labor activism may
findings have shown that wome
allowance, health clinic services, drinking water, and food allowance. Table 17
raised during the fieldwork. The table also suggests possible actions in addressing
the issues and responsible actors that will carry the issues.
Moreover, labor organizers must not only pay attention to structural
s greater responsibilities for
household and family, and times and locations of union meetings that may constrain
(see Wertheimer and Nelson 1975 cited in Melcher et al. 1992). These biases can be
172
reduced through informal gatherings that include male and female union officers and
union members.
FIGURE 9
THE RELATIONSHIP OF STRUCTURE, AGENCY, AND SOCIAL AND PERSONAL CONTEXT
Findings also showed that women workers tend to be more active in labor
union activities if they see that more advantages can be gained from it. This supports
the rational choice theory. However, extra advantages (networks and knowledge)
are only experienced by those who frequently attend labor trainings or meetings. But
Individual agency (autonomy, decision making, and so on)
Structures of gender in factory (lower wages, job segregation, & other unequal treatments), family (kinship obligations, heavy family responsibilities, sexual subordination at home), and community (passive attitude), including labor union (under-representation of women)
The formation of women
identities (activist or
non-activist)
The dominant sources of identity: - gender roles (dutiful,
responsible, obedient), - social networks
(spatially extensive and local, family-based networks)
The degree of involvement in labor
activism (highly active in overt and covert actions or less active labor
protesters)
173
efforts must be made to get women workers to attend these meetings since these
are rarely attended by the majority of women workers. This suggests that labor
organizers should be more active in transferring their knowledge to union members,
not only through formal channels such as labor trainings or union meetings, but also
during break time and other informal occasions inside or outside the workplace.
TABLE 17
GUIDELINES FOR IMPROVING WOME
Issues Possible actions Actors
1. Family allowance For widow and married women workers.1 Labor unions can start to make a
list of widow and married women workers in the factory.
Labor unions can also ask the widows to get a reference from their neighborhood chiefs about their status as widow.
The list and reference can be a basis during collective labor agreement negotiations.
Some widow and some married women workers aside from work to be involved during the negotiations.
Labor union officers
Married women workers and widow
2. Health clinic service and facility
representative can make a self-administered questionnaire regarding health clinic service and facility (ask the workers to add other problems that they have ever encountered).
Wodistribute the questionnaires to workers in their production line and collect them.
Union officers compile it and the
Labor union officers
Workers
1Women who do not have husbands working in the same factory.
174
Table 17 Continued
Issues Possible actions Actors
3. Food composition and
food allowance.
data compilation can be used to strengthen their arguments during bipartite negotiations.
Ask the workers who are disappointed with food composition that served in the canteen to sign a petition that ask the company to improve it.
Labor unions can also suggest an alternative menu and its cost.
Labor union officers
Workers
4. Drinking water complaints from workers regarding dirty drinking water.
Labor union officers with the help
a short report on this and bring supervisors and management to see the condition of drinking water.
Labor union officers
Workers
5. Rest room facility Make a list about poor conditions of rest room facilities and take some pictures.
Give the list and pictures to the management.
Labor union officers Workers representatives
Issues for further studies
Studies on labor process or factory work need to examine not only the often-
emphasized differences between men and women but also differences between men
and women by ethnicity, work status (permanent workers and contractual workers),
work position (operators and group leaders or other higher positions), and others.
This study is only able to reveal the differences among women by ethnicity and little
information is given on the differences by work position.
In relation to the issue of identity, there is a need to further examine the
circumstances where identities are activated. This may enhance our understanding
175
of the nature of identity as either fluid or fixed, or both. Moreover, although ethnicity
does not appear crucial in the formation of women worker activists in this study, it
still needs to be examined further since industrial areas are colored by various ethnic
backgrounds. In order to unearth more issues of ethnicity, further studies need to
see the expression of ethnicity in the place of destination as well as the place of
origin (see Elmhirst 2004) and highlight differences in ethnic backgrounds and how
involvement in multiple networks or social organizations that may promote or
constrain labor activism. This study has revealed that women are more active in
economic-oriented organizations that boost their income such as rotating savings
associations and cooperatives. However, since the nature of these organizations
does not d
organizations may not constrain labor activism. In fact, these can be a part of
Besides these three issues, another recommendation is to make a
comparative study between a high-militancy area and a low-militancy area. Based on
available literature, only one study has made such a comparison (see Silvey 2003).
Another point for further study is a comparison between male and female militancy.
In addition, the ten cases in this study are insufficient to develop strong
generalizations on the effect of sources of identity on labor activism, so further
176
studies need sufficient samples to allow researchers to make stronger
generalizations.
177
APPENDIX A
INTERVIEW GUIDE1
Structural Conditions: The Nature of Community and Industry in Ujungberung (Village headman, the elders of community, the neighborhood chiefs, the members of the community)
Socioeconomic condition 1. What was the main livelihood of Ujungberung residents before the factories were
established? 2. What is the main livelihood of Ujungberung residents now? 3. What are the income generating activities in Ujungberung? 4. What are the job preferences of the younger generation? 5. What is the main source of livelihood of the migrants in Ujungberung? 6. What are the public services available in the community? Who provides these
services? 7. Do the migrants have equal access to these public services? 8. How do you describe the economic condition of your neighborhood? 9. What are the important social organizations in the community? 10. What are the roles of these social organizations? Who are the participants? 11. Do women get equal chances to participate in these organizations?
Cultural identification 1. How many ethnic groups are there in the community? 2. What is the dominant ethnic group?
1 The questions more or less depend on the situation of interview and the
willingness of informants to give answers to questions.
178
3. Why are there various ethnic groups in the community? 4. How do the natives perceive the non-Sundanese migrants? 5. How do the Sundanese perceive the migrants? 6. How do the local authorities treat the migrants? 7. Have you ever heard or experienced conflict with regards to the presence of
migrants in the community? 8. If yes, how do the members of community (native and migrant) resolve the
conflict? The industrial-historical context 1. When were the factories established? What factories? Who were the first
factory owners? 2. What was the previous proportion between women and men workers? How
about the current proportion? 3. What was the previous proportion between local and migrant workers? How
about the current proportion? 4. What are the impacts of industrialization on land use? 5. How have the factories been significant to the growth of Ujungberung? 6. What have been the significant events in the history of industrialization in
Ujungberung? 7. What infrastructures and facilities does the factory provide? Who can use
these? 8. What happened to the Ujungberung residents, especially factory workers
(migrant and natives) during the economic crisis in 1997-1998? 9. What do you think about Ujungberung conditions now compared to five or ten
years ago?
179
Structural context: the Nature of Labor Activism in the Factory (Labor organizers, the
1. How many times over the past year has the union called for a strike or
lockout? When? 2. Under what circumstances/reasons were the strikes/lockouts held? 3. Who were involved in the strikes/lockouts? 4. What were the results? What were the lessons learned? 5. What were the responses of the management to those who were involved?
Trade union profile 1. How many trade unions are there in the factory? 2. What are the differences between one trade union from another? 3. What is the present organizational structure of the union that you are
engaging in? 4. Who are the present officers? How were they selected? What are the roles
and responsibilities of each?
5. How many members are there at present?
6. Has the number/percentage increased? Since when?
7. What is the proportion of women and men members?
8. What is the proportion of local and migrant members?
9. How does a male or a female qualify for membership? In particular, how does a female migrant qualify for membership?
I. Women workers and the trade union (women factory workers)
1. What trade union are you currently engaged in?
2. Why do you join the union?
180
3. In your opinion, how will you benefit from the union?
4. What are the benefits that you have obtained from the union so far?
5. What is your position in the union?
6. What difference can you make within the union?
7. Do you participate actively in the trade union? Why or why not?
8. What are the activities usually held by the trade union?
9. What do you think of these activities?
10. What is the most important activity for you? Why?
11. Does the trade union help workers overcome the problems that are not related to workplace issues? How?
II.
1. How do you perceive strikes/lockouts? How about labor trainings?
2. Have you ever joined any strikes/lockouts/labor trainings?
3. If yes, why? How many times and when? Under what reasons were
the strikes/labor trainings held? Who were involved?
4. What were the results? What were the lessons learned?
5. When was the last time you participated? A year? A month? A week ago?
6. For those who have joined strikes: What did you feel the first time you
joined a strike?
7. Does the union require the members to join strikes?
8. Is there a penalty for not joining strikes?
9. Under what conditions do you join/not join the strikes/lockouts/labor trainings?
181
10. In your opinion, what are advantages/disadvantages of joining strikes/lockouts and labor trainings?
11. What does your family/spouse think about your involvement in the
strikes?
12. Did they show resistance or support with regard to your involvement?
13. If yes, what kind of resistance/support? Why?
III. (Village headman,
the elders of community, the neighborhood chiefs, the members of the community)
1. In general, how do you perceive the strikes/lockouts that are held by
the union?
2. Do you favor or disfavor strikes? Why?
3. Do you favor or disfavor women who engage in the strikes/lockouts? Why?
4.
5. What do the local authorities/members of community do with regard to
the strikes/lockouts?
6. Has the community ever had any disputes or conflicts with the trade union?
7. If yes, what kind of disputes and what are the reasons that underlie the
disputes?
8. How do the local governments, managements, members of community, and trade unions resolve the disputes?
IV. Female Factory Workers in Ujungberung
For female factory workers (locals, migrants, and commuters):
Personal and demographic information
1. Name:
182
2. Age:
3. Address:
4. Marital status:
5. Educational attainment:
6. Recent occupation (work trajectory):
7. Job description:
8. Working status:
9. Family size:
10. Origin:
11. Ethnic group:
12. Sources of household income:
13. Monthly expenses:
14. Property ownership (house, land, appliances, livestock, and others): For Female migrant factory workers: Decision to migrate 1. Why did you decide to migrate to Bandung? To get a better job? To reduce
your family burden? To help your family? 2. How did you come to Bandung? Was there anyone who helped when you first
arrived? Who were they? 3. Who told you about the job opportunity in Ujungberung, Bandung? 4. Who helped you get a job in Ujungberung? 5. What does your family (specifically, your parents) think about your decision to
migrate?
183
For female factory workers (locals, migrants, and commuters): Social networks 1. Who do you live with? 2. How many close friends do you have in the area (factory and community)? 3. Who are they? Are they from the same ethnic group as you, from a different
ethnic group, or a combination of both? 4. How often do you go out with your friends? Where do you usually go? 5. How often do you visit your friends? For what reasons? 6. When you get sick who usually helps you? Family? Friends? Neighbors? Or
someone else? Are they from the same ethnic group as you, from a different ethnic group, or a combination of both?
7. When you need money for daily needs who usually helps you? Family?
Friends? Neighbors? Or someone else? Are they from the same ethnic group as you, from a different ethnic group, or a combination of both?
8. When you need a big amount of money, where would you usually ask for
help? Family? Friends? Neighbors? Or someone else? Are they from the same ethnic group as you, from a different ethnic group, or a combination of both?
9. Who would you ask for help, if you are depressed? Family? Friends?
Neighbors? Or someone else? Were they from the same ethnic as you, from a different ethnic group or a combination of both?
10. Do you go out socially with native neighbors? Fellow workers? 11. How close is your relationship with your native neighbors? Fellow migrants?
To whom are you closest to? Why? 12. How often do you visit or chat with your native neighbors? Fellow migrants?
Which one do you visit or chat with more often? Why? 13. Have you ever asked for help from your native neighbors? What kind of help?
Do they help you? 14. How often do you visit your family? 15. How often do you write letters or call your family or friends?
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16. Have you ever encountered any problems in your workplace? What kind of
problem? Who do you ask for help? 17. If you encounter problems with the management, who would you ask for
help? 18. If you encounter problems with fellow workers, who would you ask for help? 19. Have you ever encountered problems in the community, such as garbage
collection, quarrels with neighbors, etc? If so,who do you ask for help? 20. Do you get any financial/social support from members of your family? 21. Do you give financial support to your family? (or send remittance for the
migrant workers)? 22. How important are these social networks to you? 23. Do you actively participate in the hometown association and in the
associations in the community and the workplace? 24. In your opinion, how will you benefit from these associations? 25. What is your position in these associations? Ethnicity 1. How would you describe the relationship between the Sundanese and non-
Sundanese? 2. How do you perceive the Sundanese?
3. How do you represent yourself among the Sundanese?
4. Have you ever experienced any problem in being non-Sundanese?
5. If yes, how do you overcome these problems?
6. How did you adjust to the local habits?
7. Have you ever experienced difficulties in adjusting to the local habits?
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8. If yes, how do you cope with these difficulties?
Domestic activities 1. Besides factory wage work, are there other income-generating activities
women are engaged in? What are they? 2. When are they done? How much do they earn from these activities? 3. What domestic chores do you usually do? When are these done during the
day? How much time is allocated for these chores?
Gender Division of labor in the household For married women workers: 1. How are household chores divided among the members? Who does what?
What are the tasks assigned to female members? To male members? Why is the arrangement like this?
2. How many hours do women allocate for domestic work? The men? Why? 3. How do you manage your family if you have to work overtime? 4. Who will take care of your children while you are working? 5. Have you ever gotten any complaints from your spouse or children in relation
to your job? For single women workers: 1. Where do you live? Do you live in dormitories, rent a room, or live somewhere
else? 2. Do you live alone or with friends? 3. If living with friends: are they from the same ethnic group as you, from a
different ethnic group, or a combination of both? How are household chores divided among the members? What do you usually do? Do you share the rent payment, food, and others? How much do you contribute per month?
186
V. Women in the factory (management, labor organizer, and women workers) Demographic characteristics
1. How many are married? Single?
2. What are the dominant age groups of women migrants?
3. What are their educational attainments?
4. What are their religious affiliations? How are they distributed by religion?
5. What are their geographic and cultural origins?
6. How many are permanent workers? Temporary? Casual?
Recruitment 1. How does recruitment proceed in the factory? 2. What is the educational level or skills required of the women? 3. Where does management usually put women workers? Why? 4. What are the preferences of the management? Women or men? Local or
migrant? Young or Old? Single or Married? Why is this so? 5. What benefits do women workers enjoy? Do they vary by position and
gender? Why?
187
Division of labor in the factory 1. How is work divided between men and women? 2. What production processes do women workers dominate? Wage scheme 1. How much are the women paid? The men? 2. Has there ever been a wage difference between women and men workers? If
so, how much? What actions have been taken to resolve it? What were the results?
3. How often does a wage increase occur? Why is this so? Work hours 1. How many hours do you work per day? 2. Are there break periods? How often? How long? 3. How many shifts are there in your workplace? Is the shift system working for
both men and women? Working conditions 1. Are the workplaces clean and sanitary? Is there a regular janitorial service? 2. Are the tools and equipments safe for usage? Are the workplaces fitted to
safety and emergency facilities? 3. What are the occupational hazards for women? For men? What does
management do to prevent them? 4. What are the problems concerning the working conditions? 5. Have there been incidences of harassment and physical and verbal abuse?
How often and widespread are these? What were the actions taken to prevent them?
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APPENDIX B
SHORT BIOGRAPHIES OF TEN WOMEN
Wati was born in Bandung City but she spent her childhood in Cicalengka, another
region in West Java, with her grandmother. She moved back to Bandung in 1984 to
study. Today, she is a twenty-eight-year-old Sundanese mother of a one-and-a half-
year-old daughter. She was married in 2002 to a Sundanese man who works in a
printing company in Bandung City. Wati has been active in organization activities
since she was in high school. She was elected as a vice-president of SPN in TIC for
2003-2006. But then, she decided to resign from the union s organizational structure
and moved up to DPC Bandung City of SPN. Now, she is the only female officer in
DPC of SPN in Bandung City.
Rosa is a Javanese migrant born in Purwokerto, Central Java in 1977. Her family
migrated to Bandung City in the 1980s. She has an older brother and a younger
sister, both of whom are already married and are staying in different regions in West
Java. Rosa is still single and staying with her parents in Ujungberung area. When
she was in senior high school, she was active in religious organizations in the school
as well as in the community. Before she got a job in TIC, she taught children in her
workplace to represent workers in her department line (w
labor meetings or negotiations with management. After the fieldwork was completed,
189
she shared that she represented TIC workers in a competition for the best employee
in the city level. She was chosen as the sixth winner from hundreds of candidates.
Nia is a twenty-nine-year-old Javanese from Kebumen, Central Java. She has three
siblings: two of them live with her parents in Kebumen and another one works in
Jakarta, as the personal driver of a well-known businessman. She migrated to
Bandung City in 1994 and lived with her relative for a year until she got a steady job.
She got married to a Sundanese man in 1997. A year later, she gave birth to a son.
She sent her son to be taken care of by her parents when he was four years old. Nia
is very friendly. She has many friends inside and outside the workplace. Her ability to
make friends, paved the way for her to be elected as one of the
representatives in TIC. As of her latest update, Nia and Rosa hold both positions as
vice presidents of SPN in TIC.
Putri is a Batak migrant. She was born in 1979 in North Sumatera. Her family
migrated to Depok, West Java in 1984. However, they only stayed in Depok for three
years. They moved to Bandung City in order to have a better life. In 2005, Putri
married a Batak man and gave birth a year later to a daughter. Her husband is a
senior high school teacher. Both are active in the association of Batak youth and
church organizations. In 2001, she represented workers in her production line in
labor collective negotiations and labor meetings. A few years later, she was elected
as the fourth vice president of SPN at the enterprise level. After giving birth,
190
however, she preferred to focus on child care and only joins union activities that will
not take up her family time.
Ati is a commuter from Cibaduyut, Bandung Region which is one-and-a-half-hour
ride from the Ujungberung. She is a Sundanese mother of three. Her husband who
works as newspaper seller which madeher as the primary income earner in the
family. She has been working in TIC for more than twenty-four years now. Being a
forty-five-year-old mother and main income earner do not restrain her from being
active in union activities. She is active in organizing workers in TIC. She is
responsible for the needs of workers during labor union activities. Therefore, she has
to join activities such as strikes and demonstrations wherever they take place.
Supports from her husband allow her to join union activities that often take up her
family time.
Wida is twenty-six years old. She is the only local Sundanese woman who engages
actively in labor union activities. Although she lives near her extended families,
support from husband, who is working as a senior high school teacher, and the
absence of children allow her to be among the few women activists in TIC. She has
been working in TIC for seven years and has been placed as an operator. She was
elected as the first vice president who is responsible for organization issues.
According to Wida, her family can still tolerate her participation in labor activism as
long as it
that discourage any aggressive action in addressing its demands.
191
Pipin is a thirty-year-old Sundanese mother of three. She was born and raised in a
Sundanese community in Cileunyi dominated by her kin members. She began
working in TIC when she was twenty years old and single. She was relatively active
in labor activism until she got married and had children. Although she withdrew from
labor union activities, she is still active in economic-oriented organizations such as
arisan (rotating savings association) and aerobic. Her husband allows her to engage
in these activities that are less time-consuming than day-to-day union activities.
Now, her life revolves around her family, work, and community activities.
Diah is a twenty-seven-year-old local Sundanese mother of a newly born daughter.
She is one of the locally recruited workers in TIC. She has been working in TIC for
seven years and is placed in maintenance. She is a senior high school graduate like
the majority of TIC workers. As with many local Sundanese, she lives with her
extended family. She has become a primary income earner in her household
because her husband is irregularly employed. Being a primary income earner and
being responsible for domestic chores limited her participation labor union activities.
However roups. Every weekend she spends
some of her time with the group.
Nana is one of the operators in TIC. She is a twenty-seven-year-old migrant from
North Sumatera and still single. She had been working in TIC for six and a half years
and resigned at the end of 2006 for health and family reasons. Actually, her income
as a factory worker was important for supporting four of her siblings but she could
192
not adjust with the work shift system that required her to work at the night shift. After
working at the night shift, she kept feeling unwell. Thus, she decided to resign. Nana
is an active member of a church organization and youth organization. Being active in
these organizations and running her small business make her less able to organize
labor union activities at the enterprise level. However, when she was having a
problem with her group leader who often treated her unfairly, she began to learn
about labor issues with labor union officers until she resigned.
Parmi is a forty-six-year-old Javanese migrant from Purworejo, Central Java. A few
years after she graduated from elementary school, she migrated with her relatives to
Jakarta to find a job. She worked for a while in Jakarta and moved to Bandung City
in the 1970s where she stayed with her aunt. She got a job in Tomenbo in 1978.
Thus, she has been working in TIC for almost thirty years. She is married to a
Javanese man and has two children. Both of her children were sent to Purworejo to
be taken care of by her parents when they were still infants. After finishing their
senior high school in Purworejo, they moved and lived with Parmi in Bandung City.
193
APPENDIX C
PHOTOS OF THE STUDY
Minimum wage strike
194
Male union officers on strike
A woman worker with her son during the minimum wage strike
195
A time for sharing stories and fruit peanut-sauced salad during the strike
196
Women in packing division
Men at work
197
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