Bali News

Vice Head of Kamar Dagang dan Industri (Kadin) Bali – Bali Chamber of Commerce and Industry – Anak Agung Alit Wiraputra said that basic electricity tariff escalation will influence the labor fate in industrial sector.

“We estimate for the next three months there will be more than 200 thousands labors work at small industry and other household industrial sectors threatened could lost their job,” he said in Denpasar, on Wednesday.

In the middle of the meeting with Bali DPD-RI – Bali regional representative council for Indonesian Republic – said that unemployment threat cause by basis electricity tariff hikes nationally for around 10 percent is impossible fulfilled by small companies such as creative industries spread around Bali.

Alit confessed that since the escalation of basis electricity tariff per July 1, 2010, the effect is still has not yet to be felt. All comes to make sense if they entering the second and third months after the escalation period, those entrepreneurs would shock by seeing their electricity bill get increase.

Due to that swell bill, he said, automatically they would increase their handicraft-selling price thereafter would cause the change of market pattern. Sudden pricing increase in certain time would decrease their customer in which would affect their number of income.

“Automatically, there will be goods accumulation at the warehouse due to the unsold goods at the market. Then, there will be no production for the next two and three months. Here is the point where unemployment state would happen. Termination of employment will take over from here and there will be also a condition where those labors would not receive their salary,” said the man who is also an entrepreneur in Bali.

He said that the central government should put their concern toward the needs and resources in Bali. What’s Bali able to do merely develop small and middle industry such as handicraft, sculpture, wooden or stone carving, weaving, etc.

“All of those small industries, based on our observation, could absorb almost 30 percent men power in Bali or close to one million people, although not all of them are the native,” he said.

He viewed the basis electricity tariff escalation would affect the price for raw material, increase production cost and transportation for almost 30 percent. It would cause the selling price raise up to 50 percent.

In order to solve this problem, Kadin Bali asked Bali provincial government recommended PLN Bali to give dispensation around 10 to 15 percent from the normal tariff after the new tariff increase.

According to Alit Wiraputra, this kind of request is plausible enough since there are 2.200 small and middle entrepreneurs spread around Bali used electricity power from 2.000 to 2.200 Watt.

It means that they would feel the effect of the new basis tariff increase since the government merely set free of such increase to the customer who used 400 to 900 Watt electricity power.

Those entrepreneurs who are around two thousands in number should receive special treatment from PLN with recommendation from Bali Governor in order to prevent massive jobless in Bali.

Kadin petition achieve positive respond from Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika who promised would conduct immediate study based on the data gathered by Kadin Bali.

“We would soon strive for it to avoid unwanted things take place,” he said.

News by Antara Bali