Indonesia’s scrapping of placement fees for migrant workers welcomed – except by agencies, employers

Advocates say Jakarta’s new rules will help prevent workers from falling into debt traps, though questions have been raised about enforcement

Employment agencies, meanwhile, have voiced their opposition – claiming the move will make it too expensive to hire Indonesian domestic helpers

Reading Time:5 minutes

Domestic helpers on a footbridge in Mong Kok on their day off earlier this month. Photo: Edmond So

Published: 8:30am, 27 Sep 2020Updated: 5:44pm, 28 Sep 2020

Indonesian migrant workers will no longer be required to pay their own placement and training fees under new regulations being introduced by Jakarta in a move that has been welcomed by workers and advocates alike, but that has Hong Kong employment agencies arguing it will make hiring domestic helpers from the country too expensive.

Domestic workers from Indonesia have been charged about 15 million Indonesian rupiah (US$1,007) to secure a job in the city, though “in reality” many end up paying double that amount or sometimes more, according to Sringatin, chairwoman of the Indonesian Migrant Workers’ Union, who like many Indonesians goes by only one name.

“It depends on the recruitment agency,” she said. “Some agencies even borrow money on behalf of the Indonesian workers and then we need to pay to the debt collector.”

The new regulations, which Indonesia’s government approved in July, are expected to be implemented within six months.

“The aim is to protect Indonesian migrant workers from problems caused by their inability to afford the high cost of placement fees. Migrant workers often deal with financial problems like heavy debts in their effort to pay placement fees, which puts them in a helpless situation,” said a spokesman for the Indonesian consulate in Hong Kong.

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