In March 2014, nine workers at Nike’s Chang Shin factory in Karawang, Indonesia, were fired for exercising their fundamental right to freely associate and to peaceably demonstrate for better wages and working conditions. The nine workers were all members of the PPMI Union Committee at the factory.
On 25 November 2013, the PPMI Union Committee had made three formal demands of the factory management: a wage increase taking the wages above the monthly minimum wage; a better insurance plan; and payment of their annual bonuses.
After receiving no reply, the Committee resubmitted their demands to management on 6 December 2013 and again on 18 December 2013. On 31 December 2013, the workers exercised their right to demonstrate, and management agreed to pay the bonus.
Throughout January, the Committee sent further requests to the factory management, asking when the bonus would be paid. At the same time, the factory’s human resources department interrogated 50-70 members of the PPMI union, asking the workers: (a) where were you on 31 December?; (b) why did you join the protest?; and (c) who gave you the idea to demand the annual bonus?
The Committee members were also interrogated. They were given a sheet of blank company letterhead and told to give a testimony of their activities in December 2013 and to “confess” that what they did was a violation of the collective bargaining agreement the company had with the PPMI union. The Committee members refused.
On 19 March 2014, six members of the PPMI Union Committee were fired. Following a meeting between all nine members of the Committee, PPMI leaders and the factory management a week later, the remaining three Committee members were also fired.
Peaceful demonstrations by the PPMI in April 2014 were met with heavy presence of police, Indonesian military, factory security and preman (hired thugs).
On 20 May 2014, the nine fired employee representatives were threatened by the factory, which threatened to press criminal charges if they did not take a severance package and stop all organising activity on the issue. Eight of them accepted the package and the factory reported the ninth to police.