Our focus is to have a legal umbrella for ministerial regulation (Permen) for domestic workers who have lost their rights as workers.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Domestic Workers' Protection (PPRT) Bill gives recognition to domestic workers, Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Bintang Puspayoga has said.

"If we talk about the PPRT bill, the first is about the recognition of domestic workers and then protection. The protection is comprehensive not only for discrimination and violence but also related to wage and others," she informed at the Presidential Palace here on Wednesday.

She made the statement at a press conference with President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah, and Deputy V of the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) Jaleswari Pramodhawardhani.

According to her, the bill focuses not only on the protection of domestic workers but also on the regulation of employers and recruiters.

The draft of the PPRT bill has been developed significantly and has included several inputs from stakeholders, Puspayoga noted.

Meanwhile, Minister Fauziyah said that the bill will regulate social security for domestic workers, both in terms of health and employment.

According to Pramodhawardhani, the government has formed a task force to monitor the bill.

President Widodo said he expected the PPRT Bill to be passed soon and provide better protection to domestic workers as well as employers and recruiters.

"Our focus is to have a legal umbrella for ministerial regulation (Permen) for domestic workers who have lost their rights as workers. Because, in reality, these workers are prone to losing their rights, thus I think it is time for us to have a PPRT Law," he said.

The PPRT bill has been through a long road to becoming a law. The bill was proposed in 2004 and was pushed to be ratified in 2009.

In 2019, the bill was included in the National Legislation Program (Prolegnas). Then in 2020, the Legislative Body of the House of Representatives (DPR) approved it as the DPR's initiative bill. However, so far, the bill has not been brought to a plenary session.

Related news: Job Creation Law has improved worker protection: minister
Related news: Protection law ensures migrant workers' rights: Minister












Translator: Desca Lidya, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2023