TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Thousands of West Java laborers will stage a protest against the provincial minimum wage (UMP) in front of the State Palace, Central Jakarta today, Thursday, January 8, 2026. The President of the Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) and also the President of the Labor Party, Said Iqbal, claimed that the demonstration would involve 5,000 to 10,000 laborers from West Java.
The demonstration is carried out as a form of protest against the UMP policies of the Governor of DKI Jakarta, Pramono Anung, and the Governor of West Java, Dedi Mulyadi. The UMP is considered to violate the Constitutional Court's decision and the government's regulations on wages, as well as widening the social gap.
"When regional governments ignore regulations related to wages and the Constitutional Court's decisions, workers have no choice but to take to the streets and demand justice directly from the President," he said in a statement on Wednesday, January 7, 2025.
The workers demand a revision of the 2026 Jakarta UMP to be 100 percent of the decent living cost (KHL) amounting to Rp5.89 million per month, and the implementation of the provincial sectoral minimum wage (UMSP) for Jakarta in 2026 which is 5 percent above 100 percent of KHL.
The workers also demand a revision of the Governor of West Java's decree regarding the determination of UMSK values in 19 regencies/cities throughout West Java to be returned in accordance with the recommendation letters from the respective regents/mayors.
Said stated that the reason for the demonstration in front of the State Palace is because Dedi no longer listens to the workers' aspirations in determining the sectoral minimum wages of regencies/cities or UMSK 2026 in West Java. Said accused Dedi of violating Presidential Regulation No. 49 of 2025 concerning Wages, signed by President Prabowo Subianto.
The regulation states that in the determination of UMSK in a province, the Governor is not allowed to alter the recommendations given by the regent/mayor.
"However, in fact, KDM made changes, eliminations, and reductions to the types of industrial sectors and UMSK values that had been recommended by 19 regents/mayors," Said Iqbal said.
In addition, the elimination of UMSK in 19 regencies/cities throughout West Java was done without being based on the results of the Provincial Wage Council meeting, but only based on inputs from the Head of the West Java Manpower Office. Said said that this action clearly exceeds bureaucratic authority.
With the decision of KDM's decree, the wages of soy sauce and bread factory workers in West Java are actually higher than those of workers in Samsung, LG, Panasonic, Epson, and other large multinational corporations.
The Governor of DKI Jakarta also did not refer to Constitutional Court Decision No. 168 of 2024 in determining the 2026 UMP. The decision emphasizes that in determining the minimum wage increase, the governor must consider the decent living cost, in addition to inflation variables, economic growth, and specific indices.
"By referring to Constitutional Court Decision No. 168, the Governor of DKI Jakarta should have set the 2026 Jakarta UMP at 100 percent of the KHL, which is IDR 5.89 million per month," he said.
Said also asked for justice from President Prabowo Subianto regarding the policies of the Governors of DKI Jakarta and West Java. The policies implemented by the two governors are considered to create social disparities, contradict the President's spirit, and violate Presidential Regulation No. 49 of 2025 concerning Wages. Therefore, workers from DKI Jakarta and West Java are asking the President to instruct the Governors of DKI Jakarta and West Java to fulfill the workers' demands.
"If there is no resolution, the actions will continue from time to time, both at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta and in Bandung," he said.
Prior to this, the workers also held demonstrations rejecting the UMP in the Patung Kuda area, Central Jakarta on Monday, December 29, and Tuesday, December 30, 2025.
Several regional governments have announced varying amounts for the 2026 UMP, referring to Government Regulation No. 49 of 2025 concerning Wages. In the latest Wage Regulation, the formula for next year's wage increase calculation is inflation + (economic growth x alpha). The coefficient range for the center for the 2026 UMP is between 0.5 and 0.9.
The Governor of DKI Jakarta, Pramono Anung, stated that the wage council meeting decided that the determination of the 2026 UMP is based on an alpha index of 0.75. "Thus, the Jakarta UMP increases by Rp333,115 from the previous Rp5,396,761," he said.
Meanwhile, the Governor of West Java, Dedi Mulyadi, announced that the UMP and UMSP of West Java in 2026 reached Rp2,317,601 and Rp2,339,995, respectively. Dedi Mulyadi stated that the proposed values for the sectoral minimum wages of the regencies/cities followed the government's regulations.
Dedi declared the UMK and UMSK values as the most ideal. "In my opinion, they are ideal. But in the view of employers, they are considered too expensive, while workers consider them too cheap, that's common. But the government is in the middle," he said.
Sultan Abdurrahman contributed to this article.
Read: Thousands of Workers to Protest in Jakarta for Higher Wages
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