Page 18 - e-KLIPING KETENAGAKERJAAN 19 NOVEMBER 2019

Chatelier said the company, which currently employs more than 700 workers in the country,
could sell 1,000 to 1,500 units of escalators and elevators per year in areas ranging from
Jakarta to Surabaya.

"We have three main business areas, namely high-rise buildings, residential mid-rise
buildings, as well as low-rise buildings," said Chatelier, claiming that the company was
currently the market leader in Indonesia and had been since 2016.

Apart from the Berca Schindler program, more and more companies have joined forces with
the government to provide industrial training in an effort to bridge the skills gap in the
country.

The Indonesian Textile Association (API) and the Industry Ministry, for instance, have
signed agreements with 1,200 SMKs to provide work training in the past three years.

Meanwhile, publicly listed diversified conglomerate Astra International has also been
training students to meet industry requirements at its own manufacturer polytechnic,
Polman Astra, since 1995.

More such programs and partnerships between vocational schools and industries are
expected to come to fruition as the government will team up with industry groups in its
effort to revitalize vocational schools across Indonesia.

The government plans to revitalize 550 SMKs by the end of the year, having allocated Rp
4.3 trillion (US$304.9 million) for the program following the revitalization of 300 vocational
schools last year.

As the President prioritizes human resource development, he has increased the education
budget to Rp 505.8 trillion in 2020 from Rp 488.4 trillion this year, some of which will
finance the Indonesia Smart Card for university students (KIP Kuliah) and the
preemployment card program to fund jobseeker training.

The government will also speed up the development of skilled labor by providing double
income tax deductions for companies offering vocational training and internship programs
and triple tax deductions for expenditure on research and development.

The nationwide training program is seen as necessary to prepare the country's workforce
for a changing job market as employers have been complaining about a yawning skills gap
in Indonesia. Machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) will only speed up the
automation trend and jeopardize job security in the country.

As AI-enabled automation increases, up to 120 million workers in the world's 12 largest
economies, including Indonesia, may need to participate in reskilling programs in the next
three years, according to a recent study released by IBM's Institute for Business Value.

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