China's famously cheap imported goods are suspected of being one of the causes of the collapse of the domestic textile and textile products (TPT) industry. Especially, companies oriented to the domestic market. Ristadi, President of the Nusantara Trade Union Confederation (KSPN), said that this condition put the TPT industry under more pressure than the shoe (footwear) industry. Moreover, the national TPT industry is dominated by companies with limited capital. "We have been calling for this invasion of imported products for decades. And to eradicate illegal imports. The rise of trade agreements and the like has made the rush of imports more liberal. As a result, it has killed domestic producers," said Ristadi, quoted Saturday (10/6/2023).
On the other hand, he admits, imported goods, especially from China, are indeed cheap and of good quality.
“Cotton cloth imported from China only costs Rp. 15,000 per meter, while if it is produced locally, it costs Rp. 30,000 per meter. I can't stop thinking how they (China) will calculate the cost, said Ristadi.
"And this is what makes a cloth factory, which previously supplied cloth to Batik artisans in Pekalongan, turn into importers of cloth from China. He becomes like a toller there. Batik craftsmen know that the cloth is now from China and realize that it is market law, goods cheap and good, that's what we're looking for. This has become a scourge, a vicious circle, we've been talking about it for decades," he said.
Inquiry has inquired, he added, there are many factors that make Chinese goods cheaper to produce.
“Indeed, not only in terms of wages, costs in China are more economical. Starting from services, incentives, energy prices, to infrastructure which of course has an impact on costs as well. Our permits are already heading in that direction, yes, it's more efficient," he said.
"And, speaking of wages, there is a misunderstanding here regarding the minimum wage, it is considered the maximum wage. The company seems to have followed the rules. As a result, workers who have just joined and those who have worked for decades, receive the same wage," said Ristadi.
Although he couldn't make a correlation between the two, Ristadi suspected that this could have an effect on worker productivity.
"Worker productivity in China is indeed higher. For example in a shoe factory, Chinese workers can do 1.5 or 2. But at the same time, only 1 Indonesian worker. Even though the Chinese worker is paid the same, he wants to do 1 or 2," he said.
"However, attitudes and environment also influence worker productivity. Because workers feel like they want to be diligent or not, the pay is the same," he said.
He also told me when there were protests against companies that paid higher wages to Chinese workers.
"The answer is, 1 job that handles Chinese workers, handles 2 people by the local. Not included, but the fact is that. For example, 1 team has 10 members, 7 people become foremen. Chinese workers don't seem tired. And, I have visit the factory, there are Chinese and local workers, the method of laying the bricks is indeed different," he said.
Because of that, he also hopes that the government will evaluate policies related to the minimum law. And, spurring the improvement of the quality of Indonesian workers through vocations.
"Right now, there is a new trend. Many employees now only last 1-3 months of work, get tired easily, their productivity is far from the class of 1990-2000. A little tired, they immediately get sick, the next day they don't come," Ristadi concluded.
