US EditionIndonesia Passes Long-Awaited Law to Protect Domestic Workers
The law gives 4.2 million domestic workers training and benefits, bans hiring children under 18 and sets a 12-month rulemaking period.
- On Tuesday, Indonesia's Parliament passed a law protecting domestic workers, ending over two decades of deliberations. The legislation provides legal recognition to the nation's 4.2 million domestic workers, almost 90 per cent of whom are women.
- Previously, these workers lacked legal classification, forcing them to operate within an informal economy vulnerable to exploitation. Domestic worker Ajeng Astuti described the path to protection as a '22-year struggle' since the bill was first introduced in 2004.
- Advocacy groups reported more than 3,300 cases of violence between 2021 and 2024, including physical abuse and human trafficking. In 2023, nine people in South Jakarta received four-year sentences for torturing a domestic worker.
- The new law entitles workers to vocational training, health, and unemployment benefits while prohibiting the hiring of children under 18. Minister of Law Supratman Andi Agtas stated the enactment aims to 'prevent all forms of discrimination'.
- While The Jala PRT rights group hailed the moment as 'historic,' coordinator Lita Anggraini warned that 'the struggle is not over.' The government has a 12-month period to establish supporting regulations and enforcement penalties.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Channel News Asia
Indonesia passes long-awaited law to protect domestic workers
The group was previously not legally classified as workers, meaning they were forced to operate in an informal and unregulated economy, exposed to exploitation and abuse.
Malay Mail
AlKhaleej TodayIndonesia passes landmark domestic workers law after only two decades of trying
JAKARTA, April 21 — Indonesia’s parliament passed a law on Tuesday to protect the rights of domestic workers after more than two decades of deliberations and multiple delays.The bill was first introduced in 2004 to protect the country’s 4.2 million domestic workers, almost 90 per cent of them women according to data from the Ministry of Manpower.They were previously not legally classified as workers, meaning they were forced to operate in an inf…
The government and the DPR agreed in the discussion of the PPRT Bill that the minimum age for domestic workers is 18 years.
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