Applying for a Livelihood amid Uncertainty

Kompas/Wawan H Prabowo

Photo Illustrations. A man takes a photo of his friend walking to the train station during work hours on Jalan Jenderal Sudirman Jakarta, Friday (11/9/2020)

Looking for employment during the Covid-19 pandemic is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Interview after interview is carried out by jobseekers. The result is nil, while the work at hand is lost.

On Tuesday (6/10/2020) afternoon, Mochtar Bona, 23, looked well-dressed in a light blue shirt, black pants and loafers. Apparently he had just completed a virtual interview session for a potential job.

The young man who graduated from the Management Department of Bengkulu University did not remember how many companies to which he had sent applications from August to October 2020. However, none of the applications have been met with responses.

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He understands the risks of finding work during the pandemic, namely the lack of companies looking for new employees. However, the situation in Bengkulu, his hometown, is no better. That is why he was determined to move to Jakarta.

"Last August I left for Jakarta. Then, I rented a house in Bekasi together with a friend who had also moved from Bengkulu,” he said at Sudirman Station, Central Jakarta, Tuesday.

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He also did not plan to leave his hometown during the pandemic in advance. However, unfortunately, his contract as a salesman for an automotive company in Bengkulu was terminated by the employer in the middle of this year. From a two-year contract, Bona had only been working for one year when he was asked to leave the company. He could not do anything.

"It should have been, if for two years I could meet the company\'s target, I could become a permanent employee. However, it was only less than one year," he said.

KOMPAS/FAJAR RAMADHAN

Mochtar Bona (23), job seeker from Bengkulu at Sudirman Station, Central Jakarta, Tuesday (6/10/2020).

According to Bona, the company was aggressively reducing its employees because car sales had also slowed down during the pandemic. It seemed to be a matter of time for contract employees like him. Meanwhile, the majority of permanent employees were retained. The wage in the automotive company refers to the minimum wage regulation there.

"It was not so comfortable yet. But at that time I was just looking for experience. So, keep trying," he said.

Bona is not alone in experiencing sudden dismissal from his office. Dini, 26, also feels the same way. After working for two years at an NGO in South Jakarta, her status as a contract employee was discontinued. The management did not provide an adequate explanation of her termination. Since September, Dini has also been unemployed.

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For Dini, transparency from management is very important. If management is not transparent, employees will be prejudiced. At the last institution where she worked, for example, it was unclear how big the cuts in wages were during the Covid-19 pandemic. "Anyway, talking about money is really taboo in the office," she said.

While still working, Dini was not registered with the Health Care and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan), let alone the Workers Social Security Agency (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan). When she was dismissed from the institution, Dini only got a "thank you" money amounting to one month\'s salary.

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She was offered a job at a government agency that manages funds for oil palm plantations. However, the offer was simply ignored because of her views regarding the environment that were at odds with that line of work.

On the other hand, Dini worried that the work climate will become increasingly uncertain along with the ratification of the Job Creation Bill. Because of this concern, she plans to ask for detailed work contracts with prospective workplaces, including the implications of the ratification of the bill for the company regulations.

"In my opinion, companies will have more power with this Job Creation Bill. However, we as candidates or prospective employees can also ask the company about their response to this Job Creation Bill," she said.

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

A number of workers disembark at the Transjakarta bus stop on May 12 Reformasi, Grogol, West Jakarta, Tuesday (6/10/2020).

Changing the jobs

Among the millennial circle like Dini, changing the jobs is common. The reason is not only a matter of salary. She has worked as a freelance worker in various government agencies since graduating from the university in 2016 until mid-2018. In this period, she felt that her idealism during study at the university was still high, so many of them did not fit her work climate.

In January 2018, for example, she worked for an agency close to one of the ministries. The salary was quite large. "However, the KKN (corruption, collusion, nepotism) is really strong there. Finally I moved to an NGO at the end of August 2018,” she said.

Cindy Silviana, 32, also has experiences in changing the jobs. During the last 10 years, she has worked in five companies, both national and international. When she was single, Cindy worked according to her interests. Given a minimum wage, it did not matter as long as it was comfortable and the job was according to her fondness.

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"After getting marriage and having children, the salary is also one of the determining factors. So, I generally consider whether the salary is higher or at least the same as what I currently earn. I am also still considering whether in a new place I can further develop in terms of career and skills,” said the mother of one child who now works as an international media correspondent.

Working as a contract employee in an international company has its own challenges. Despite earning more, she does not get social security. When resigning from the company, no allowance will be received. For pension funds and insurance she has to pay personally. This is different when he works for a national company where the employees receive BPJS Ketenagakerjaan and pension benefits.

Therefore, she studies the company where she works, for example by finding out the company\'s history as well as the employees\' reviews. She has to make sure she does not enter a sinking company.

What can be done about it. Being a contract employee makes life uncertain, like the stories of Bona and also Dini.

On the other hand, she regularly sets aside income for old age. A part of the monthly salary is invested, such as to buy mutual funds and insurance and prepare a pension. This savings become something she relies on when she is no longer working.

What can be done about it. Being a contract employee makes life uncertain, like the stories of Bona and also Dini.