“The National Work Force Survey in February 2023 showed there were challenges and discrimination for women workers in the workplace," she noted in a statement received here on Friday.
At the 2023 Indonesia Best Workplace For Women Awards, which were themed “Being Inspirational in the World to Bridging the Gap with Inclusivity,” Fauziyah explained that the labor force participation rate (TPAK) of women is still lower (54.42 percent) than for men (83.98 percent).
Thus, there is a gap between male and female participation in the labor market of around 29 percent.
According to the minister, the data also reflects one of the classic problems of discrimination faced by women in the world of work: the average wage and social security protection for women is always lower than that for men.
She said that lower wages have been found at almost all levels of education, types of work, and employment sectors. Meanwhile, the percentage of women who work part-time in the tertiary sector and the informal sector is relatively higher than men.
For this reason, she said her ministry is committed to carrying out the National Non-Discrimination Movement at Work.
In addition, the ministry is continuing to make efforts to eliminate harassment and violence in the workplace, including by drafting ministerial decrees on guidelines for the prevention and handling of sexual violence in the workplace, she disclosed.
"The regulation will encourage companies to provide facilities that support women's empowerment in the workplace, such as the provision of lactation rooms and child care as part of the program for enforcing women's work norms," Fauziyah explained.
Moreover, the ministry will also continue to support the process of drafting and ratifying regulations that are in favor of empowering and protecting women, such as the Mother and Child Welfare Bill and the Domestic Worker Protection Bill (PPRT).
According to the minister, the provisions on work convenience are clearly laid down in Articles 5 and 6 of Law Number 13 of 2003 concerning Manpower, which regulates protection for all workers, both men and women, by providing equal opportunities and treatment at work.
She said that this is in line with the concept of decent work for all, under which one of the basic rights of workers is to be treated non-discriminatorily and without harassment.
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Translator: Zubi Mahrofi, Resinta S
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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