But some women—and men—are fighting back.  Since April 16, workers at PT Toshiba Consumer Products Indonesia have been on strike because the company refuses to recognize a collective labor agreement signed by the Federation of Indonesian Metalworkers and management.  The striking workers have been attacked by police and hired thugs.  Aghni Dhamayanti, vice president of the union, who recently visited Washington and had the chance to meet with ILRF staff, is calling for international support for the workers.  For more details, including how to write to Toshiba, visit the site of the International Metalworkers Federation here.

My salary is far less than my monthly expenses and I struggle to
make ends meet. We get sick leave, and maternity leave – but we only
get 3 months leave for ‘maternity leave’. The kind of work we do is
tedious and strenuous. We’ve asked the farmers to reconsider our
salaries. That’s when they promise us that they will reconsider and
come back to us, but they never do. The women stuck in there jobs don’t
seem to mind or get too worried about it. There are 16 women that work
with me, and we work all year round. It’s unfortunate that we get such
little compensation for the amount of work done. We are constantly
threatened by the farmers who fire those that stand up against the

In its statement, the World Bank recognized that "it is important
that government actions focus on the needs of the labor force and lower income
households as well as those designed to help businesses to survive and
grow." To this end, labor rankings in the 2010 Doing Business
report (to be launched in September 2009) will include "provisions for fixed
term workers and standards for severance payment, mandatory days
of rest and night work and holidays, and minimum wage levels." The
Bank plans to convene a working group of "representatives from the
ILO...trade unions, businesses, academics and legal experts" in order to

My salary does not cover my expenses. We are allowed maternity leave
from work as required by law. However, temporary workers will lose
their jobs if they fall pregnant. We are not treated with respect at
the workplace. The workload is not always fair. Men are always promoted
ahead of women. I am in the process of organizing a union but am met
with constant resistance and threats that management will close down
the factory. Since the global, economic crisis 108 workers have been
temporarily laid-off. However, I believe the company is using the
global economic crisis as an excuse. Tigerways was a top rank company