The provincial minimum wages are only applied to unmarried people who have been working less than one year. For those that are married and have been working longer than one year, the salary should be raised based on an agreement between the worker and the company.

2014 Minimum Wages of 24 Indonesian Provinces:

Province   Minimum Wage
           IDR
  Minimum Wage
  Growth (yoy, %)
  Minimum Decent Living
                   IDR
Central Kalimantan        1,723,970            11.00                2,087,000
West Kalimantan        1,380,000            30.19                1,701,665
Jambi        1,502,230            15.56                1,502,230
Southeast Sulawesi        1,400,000            24.42                 1,472,581
West Sumatra        1,490,000            10.37                1,465,690
Bangka Belitung        1,640,000            29.64                1,802,823
Papua        1,900,000            11.11                1,907,000
Bengkulu        1,350,000            12.50                1,260,000
Nusa Tenggara B.        1,210,000            10.00                1,410,294
Banten        1,325,000            13.25                1,325,000
South Kalimantan        1,620,000           222.12                1,555,000
DKI Jakarta        2,441,000            10.95                2,299,860
Riau Islands        1,665,000            21.97                1,665,000  
North Sumatra        1,505,850             9.52                1,265,000
East Kalimantan        1,886,315             7.66                1,886,315
Riau        1,700,000            21.43                1,654,224
Aceh        1,750,000            12.90                1,726,515
Central Sulawesi        1,250,000            25.63                1,292,817
Moluccas        1,415,000            10.98                2,158,469
South Sumatra        1,825,600            12.00                 1,828,698
Gorontalo        1,325,000            12.77                 1,639,272
South Sulawesi        1,800,000            25.00                1,760,000
West Papua        1,870,000             8.72                2,122,472
North Sulawesi        1,900,000            22.58                1,466,472

Source: Investor Daily

Last month, widespread demonstrations took the streets as workers demanded for higher minimum wages after high inflation (8.32 percent yoy in October 2013) had significantly reduced their purchasing power. However, higher minimum wages can also backfire when companies have to cut production expenses or relocate to a different country where wages are lower. Armida Alisjahbana, Head of Bappenas, said that 44 thousand Indonesian workers have been fired in the first six months of 2013 due to slowing economic growth in combination with higher minimum wages in 2013. Given that the Indonesian economy continues to slow down and minimum wages will go up again in 2014, more layoffs can be expected. Most vulnerable workers are those in the textile, garment, and shoe industries.

2013 Minimum Wages in Asia:

Country        Minimum Wage
Japan         IDR 21,263,618
South Korea         IDR 10,431,410
Hong Kong         IDR  8,420,330
Taiwan         IDR  5,852,042
Philippines         IDR  3,255,076
Thailand         IDR  2,818,409
China         IDR  2,522,672
Indonesia         IDR  2,200,639
Vietnam         IDR   923,300
Camboja         IDR   592,981

Source: Investor Daily

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