Indonesia's House passes Labor Protection Bill with 313 articles

Indonesia's House passes Labor Protection Bill with 313 articles

6 October 2026: Indonesia's House of Representatives has approved the Bill on Labor Protection for enactment into law, a 23-chapter, 313-article text that takes labour provisions out of the Job Creation Law and covers wages, layoffs and severance pay reserve funds. It cleared the plenary about three weeks before the Constitutional Court's deadline.

Not yet independently verified. Single source: one news agency report, and we have not seen the bill text. We will add the official text or a second outlet when we find it. We will update this when it can be confirmed, and remove this note.

The deadline comes from a ruling the Court pronounced on 31 October 2024. It required lawmakers to write a new labour law, separate from Law Number 6 of 2023 on Job Creation, within two years. House Speaker Puan Maharani put the question to the factions at the ninth plenary meeting of the 2026-2027 parliamentary year, and the chamber agreed.

Commission IX Deputy Chair Putih Sari told the session that the bill went through intensive discussion, with input from the public and stakeholders collected in consultation and hearing sessions. She described it as part of building a national labour system that gives stronger protection while meeting the needs of workers and employers alike.

According to ANTARA, the bill covers workers' fundamental rights, social security, employment status, occupational health and safety, and stronger protection for vulnerable workers. It also includes measures to widen employment opportunities and to raise labour competency, productivity and competitiveness.

For employers the operational parts are the ones ANTARA lists last: wage systems, industrial relations, layoffs, severance pay reserve funds, supervision, investigations and criminal provisions. Sari said the law is meant to respond to labour market dynamics and digital transformation while balancing labour rights, the investment climate, business sustainability and job creation.

The report does not give an effective date, the wage rules, or the size or mechanics of the severance pay reserve funds. Payroll and HR teams with Indonesian staff should read those provisions in the promulgated text before changing contracts or accruals.

Sources

• ANTARA: House approves Bill on Labor Protection for enactment into law, 6 October 2026