Making a strategic Indonesian labour inspection system

Indonesian labour inspectors developed the national strategic compliance workplan Around 46 senior labour inspectors participated in a four-day workshop titled “Strategic Compliance Planning and Provincial Labour Inspectorate Workplan” held in the last week of July. The Strategic Compliance Planning for Labour Inspectorates is a strategic compliance model developed by the ILO’s Labour Administration, Labour Inspection and Occupational Safety and Health Branch (LABDMIN/OSH) of the ILO’s Governance and Tripartism Department.

The Strategic Compliance consists of a six-step exercise to formulate, sequence and operationalize broader thinking and action that will help labour inspectorates attain the goal of sustained compliance. The steps are the following: 1. Explore the labour inspectorate; 2. Explore issues and targets; 3. Explore influences; 4. Explore stakeholders; 5. Explore interventions; and 6. Operationalize the Strategic Compliance Plan.

Since the Provincial Government has been in charge of labour inspection, it is very important for the labour inspectors to have a targeted workplan. With the targeted workplan, the labour inspectors would be able to develop a short-term for a discreet compliance issue or a comprehensive proactive compliance strategy targeting multiple compliance priorities for a long-term inspection plan."

Iswandi, Director of Legal Enforcement, Directorate general of Labour Inspection and OSH, the Ministry of Manpower.

The workshop was conducted based on the request from the Ministry of Manpower of Indonesia as part of the effort to strengthen its labour inspection system that would be more focused on compliance rather than on enforcement. The request was also in line with the enactment of Law No. 23 of 2014 on Regional Government which switched the implementation of the labour inspection system from district/city level to the provincial level.

“Since the Provincial Government has been in charge of labour inspection, it is very important for the labour inspectors to have a targeted workplan. With the targeted workplan, the labour inspectors would be able to develop a short-term for a discreet compliance issue or a comprehensive proactive compliance strategy targeting multiple compliance priorities for a long-term inspection plan,” said Iswandi, Director of Legal Enforcement, Directorate general of Labour Inspection and OSH, the Ministry of Manpower.

Working groups based on islands and sectors During the workshop, the group discussion was divided into four groups of islands and sectors: Sumatra (Palm Oil – Plantations and Processing Plants), Kalimantan and Papua (Mining – Coal), Java and Bali (Construction – Power Plant) and Sulawesi (Mining – Nickel). The working groups were facilitated by Rene Robert, Senior Labour Inspection Specialist from the ILO’s Regional Office in Bangkok and Chandra Kurniawan, Head of Sub-Directorate of Labour and OSH Norms Investigation of the Ministry of Manpower.

A national system would avoid the confusion and unnecessary cost for provinces as they do not have to apply different systems and to develop their own systems and platforms. An integrated data system would improve the overall strategic planning of the national labour inspection."

Rene Robert, Senior Labour Inspection Specialist from the ILO’s Regional Office in Bangkok

In addition to other issues such as methods, equipment and resources, the participating labour inspectors indicated the important usage of the information technology. One of the participating provinces, Bangka Belitung Province, profiled its workplace online database. Compared with other provinces, it appeared that this province has the most advanced system that should be integrated as part of the national system.

The ILO’s labour inspection specialist, Rene Robert, reminded the participants the importance of building an integrated national system. “A national system would avoid the confusion and unnecessary cost for provinces as they do not have to apply different systems and to develop their own systems and platforms. An integrated data system would improve the overall strategic planning of the national labour inspection,” said Rene.

The workshop concluded with the agreement that there was indeed a need for Indonesia to build a more strategic labour inspection system and the importance of an integrated national system based on the strategic compliance system. The ILO would continue supporting Indonesia towards the implementation of strategic compliance of labour inspection.