The Decent Work Check survey is one of the data collection activities carried out through the Data Academy program. What is the purpose and objectives of conducting a Decent Work Check Survey? Is it valid? Check out more details!
What is a Decent Work Check (DWC) Survey?
What is Decent Work Check Survey for company management and trade union?
What is a Decent Work Check Survey for workers?
What is the function of the Decent Work Check Survey?
How are the data from the Decent Work Check survey used?
What is the content of the Decent Work Check Survey?
Who are the respondents of the Decent Work Check survey?
Does the Decent Work Check Survey apply to all business sectors?
Who carries out the Decent Work Check Survey?
Who are Gajimu’s interviewers?
What are the tasks and responsibilities of Gajimu’s interviewer?
Who creates Decent Work Check Survey?
How do Gajimu interviewers conduct Decent Work Check Survey during the COVID-19 pandemic?
How do the interviewers do an offline Decent Work Check Survey? What is the process?
How do Gajimu and Trade Union select the workers to be surveyed?
Is there any policy on how many workers surveyed?
How do you ensure the reliability of the data?
What is the error percentage in your survey?
If the answer from Factory management is different than workers? How will you address that?
What is a Decent Work Check (DWC) Survey?
The Decent Work Check Survey is a survey where workers can check whether the working conditions of workers who complete the survey are in accordance with the applicable labor regulations.
Based on the respondent interviewed, Decent Work Check Survey is divided into 2 types
- Decent Work Check Survey for company management and trade unions
- Decent Work Check Survey for Workers.
What is Decent Work Check Survey for company management and trade union?
This survey contains information related to the general description of the factories surveyed, such as the address, number of workers, type of product produced, factory supply chain, and information about the working conditions of the workers in the factory in accordance with Company Regulations and / or Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) within the factory.
This survey is completed by factory-level trade union and company management (HRD). It is usually done before Decent Work Check Survey for workers.
What is a Decent Work Check Survey for workers?
The Decent Work Check Survey for workers is a survey in which the respondent, in this case a worker, can act as a validator of the results of the previous survey, namely the Decent Work Check Survey for company management and Trade Union
This survey contains information about the working conditions of workers in the factory, so that we can check whether the working conditions of the workers who filled out the survey are in accordance with the information provided by the company management and trade unions in the previous survey. Automatically, it also cross-checked the implementation of Company Regulations and / or Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) that apply to companies.
What is the function of the Decent Work Check Survey?
For company management/employer, this survey is useful to check whether they have complied with the applicable labor regulations and also whether their workers have received sufficient socialization about these labor regulations. Thus, this Decent Work Check survey is expected to be able to create good working conditions in the factory environment and in accordance with the applicable Labour Law and other employment regulations.
The Manpower Act, Job Creation Act and other manpower regulations (Government Regulations, Ministerial Regulations, etc.) are used as the legal basis for the Decent Work Check Survey examination.
How are the data from the Decent Work Check survey used?
1. Conducting advocacy at the factory level
It is hoped that the data from the Decent Work Check survey can be used to carry out data/evidence-based advocacy at the factory level. Through the Data Academy training which is conducted online and face-to-face (in accordance with existing health protocols), Trade unions are trained to be able to analyze Decent Work Check survey data and use it in social dialogue / bipartite at the company level, to advocate for better working conditions.
In the Data Academy training, trade union are trained and practiced to analyze Decent Work Check survey data, by:
- See all the issues found in the survey results
- Identify the crucial issues that will be advocated (judging from the size of the issues, influence and chances that these issues can be successfully advocated)
- Formulate issues and make problem statements
- Building arguments for why this issue is important to advocate for (impact and benefits)
- Looking for supportive data that can help argument
- Target when we solve the issues, achieve changes/improvement in working conditions
- Listing authorities institution that have the power to support trade union arguments and proposals
- How to push for the proposed change (the mechanism to be used)
2. Conducting advocacy at the national and international levels
It is hoped that the data from the Decent Work Check survey will also be useful as material for advocacy at the national and international levels. The results of the Decent Work Check survey will show the working conditions in each factory, this data can be used to produce comparative studies related to factories that supply goods for the same brands/buyers.
Data from the Decent Work Check survey can also be used as supporting data if you want to conduct hearings at related institutions to help and improve the performance of labor inspectors.
What is the content of the Decent Work Check Survey?
The Decent Work Check Survey consists of 70 - 76 questions consisting of 9 question topics. These topics include:
|
No |
Topics |
Numbers of questions |
|
|
Company management and Trade union |
Workers |
||
|
1 |
Personal and company background |
22 |
13 |
|
2 |
Job Security |
7 |
9 |
|
3 |
Working Hours and Overtime |
11 |
13 |
|
4 |
Minimum Wages |
5 |
3 |
|
5 |
Maternal Rights |
10 |
10 |
|
6 |
Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) |
7 |
9 |
|
7 |
Social Security |
5 |
5 |
|
8 |
Fair Treatment |
5 |
5 |
|
9 |
Rights to Organize |
4 |
5 |
Who are the respondents of the Decent Work Check survey?
|
Survey Types |
Responden |
|
Decent Work Check Survey for company management and trade unions |
a. Company management 1 respondent from company management representative per factory b. Workers Union / Labor Union (SP / SB) 1 respondent per trade union at the factory level within the surveyed factory |
|
Decent Work Check Survey for Workers. |
Min. 30 workers / factories surveyed. The sample is calculated proportionally by looking at gender and types of employment agreement (contract or permanent) |
Does the Decent Work Check Survey apply to all business sectors?
To date, the Decent Work Check Survey in Indonesia has only been designated specifically for the garment, textile and footwear sector. However, it is possible that your future salary will conduct a Decent Work Check survey for other business sectors.
Who carries out the Decent Work Check Survey?
Gajimu team has a total of 10 interviewers, who are selected candidates from the Trade Unions in each region who are trained intensively by the Gajimu and TURC.
Who are Gajimu’s interviewers?
Individuals who are recommended by the trade union, can be regional board officials or member of trade union at various levels. Individuals who are recommended to be interviewers can work in FULL TIME for this Data Academy program.
If this is not possible, interviewers can be selected from outside the stakeholder group but have work experience in a trade union or Garment, Textile, Shoes, Leather (TGSL) sector. The interviewer is also advised to have a high interest in the field of manpower and understand the basic or principles of labor law.
Interviewer recruitment was carried out openly, selected by the Gajimu.com and TURC teams. If after interview process, the recommended individual does not match the required qualifications, then the trade union is expected to be able to find other candidates who match the qualifications.
What are the tasks and responsibilities of Gajimu’s interviewer?
The interviewer, working with other stakeholders (trade union at the factory level), must carry out and supervise the survey process in order to obtain valid and reliable results. The interviewer must establish a work plan with the support of the Gajimu.com team and the relevant Trade Unions, including define activities, collecting data that needs to be completed to obtain the results, the target population of the survey and other specifications needed to achieve the survey objectives.
Interviewers are required to read and understand well the survey manual as well as the survey questionnaire that will be used to collect information from workers in the interviewer's regional area.
Can I also fill out surveys?
Yes, anyone who works in the TGSL sector can fill out a Decent Work Check survey, online surveys are always open for web visitors, you can access them at: https://gajimu.com/garmen/home/hak-pekerja-garmen/cek-kelayakan-kerja-survei-pekerja
If you work as a staff or manager in the factory management specifically Human Resources (HR) department, you can complete Decent Work Check Survey at: https://gajimu.com/garmen/home/hak-pekerja-garmen/cek-kelayakan-kerja-survei-pekerja/cek-kelayakan-kerja-survei-hrd
If you would like Gajimu.com team to come to your factory, to conduct face-to-face interview, please contact Gajimu team at: gajimu@wageindicator.org
Who creates Decent Work Check Survey?
The Decent Work Check Survey was produced by AIAS - University of Amsterdam and WageIndicator’s labor law expert
SURVEY PROCESS
How do Gajimu interviewers conduct Decent Work Check Survey during the COVID-19 pandemic?
The Decent Work Check Survey activity was halted during 2020, and it was replaced by a COVID-19 survey that portrays the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on workers and business continuity, which is done remotely by phone.
In 2021, Gajimu team will restart to conduct Decent Work Check Survey. However, due to the COVID-19 situation and restrictions on travel, the survey implementation process will be divided into 2 ways, namely through:
- Face to face (in person / offline) - the interviewer goes directly to the factory
- By telephone, group text, (remotely / online) - the interviewer conducts a survey via a survey link that is distributed, and/or interview via telephone / zoom
This will depend on whether or not it’s safe for both interviewers and respondents to travel and do gatherings.
How do the interviewers do an offline Decent Work Check Survey? What is the process?
The following are the stages of the Decent Work Check Survey work process:
- Socialization and Determining Meeting Schedule
- The interviewer identifies who will be the respondent (workers from different type of jobs/department, gender, and employment agreement)
- The interviewer coordinates with the unions at the factory level regarding the objectives of the survey as well as set the schedule for the interviewer to visit the factory to conduct the survey
- The interviewer sends a cover letter to the survey, a letter of assignment, softcopy of survey questions, or other supporting documents to the respondent
- Arrival to factory + socialization before conducting interviews with each respondent
- The interviewer comes to the meeting place, introduces him/herself and explains the purpose of the meeting, and brings a cover letter for survey implementation, letter of assignment, hardcopy of survey questions, or other supporting documents to show to the respondent if needed.
- The interviewer coordinates with the unions at the factory level to collect respondents at a place and time that has been mutually agreed upon. Respondents were divided into several groups (adjusted to the size of the location) according to the health protocol.
- The survey
- The interviewer asks the respondent's willingness to be interviewed, if the respondent is not willing, then the interviewer will look for other candidate respondents who are willing to be interviewed
- The interviewer will guide the respondent in completing Decent Work Check Survey
- Data Entry - Input data into the system
- Analysis of Survey Results
- The data that has been entered will be analyzed by WageIndicator team
- If there are odd data, verification will be carried out
- Notification of Survey Results to Respondents
- The survey results that have been analyzed will be reported to survey respondents (unions, management, and workers), where later this data will also be displayed on the factory pages or in the form of visual data at www.gajimu.com/garmen.
How do the interviewers do an online Decent Work Check Survey? What is the process? How is it different from the offline survey?
The following are the stages of the Decent Work Check Survey process:
- Socialization and Determining Meeting Schedule
- The interviewer coordinates with the unions at the company level regarding the objectives of the survey and asks for contact numbers of potential survey respondents (workers from different type of jobs/department, gender, and employment agreement)
- The interviewer sends a cover letter to the survey, a letter of assignment, softcopy of survey questions, or other supporting documents to the respondent
- The survey
- The interviewer contacted the respondent by telephone to explain the purpose and benefits of the survey and asked the respondent's willingness to be interviewed
- If the respondent is not willing, then the interviewer will look for other candidate respondents who are willing to be interviewed
- The interviewer will guide the respondent in completing Decent Work Check Survey
- Data Entry - Input data into the system
- Analysis of Survey Results
- The data that has been entered will be analyzed by WageIndicator team
- If there are odd data, verification will be carried out
- Notification of Survey Results to Respondents
- The survey results that have been analyzed will be reported to survey respondents (unions, management, and workers), where later this data will also be displayed on the factory pages or in the form of visual data at www.gajimu.com/garmen.
DATA VALIDITY
How do Gajimu and Trade Union select the workers to be surveyed?
We take care to include respondents from different jobs, departments, contract status, ages and gender, to avoid bad practices not getting reported because they only occur in some subgroups.
We need sufficient respondents to get reports on all working conditions, from various departments and jobs, to be alerted to all working conditions requiring attention. We also need enough responses to avoid the situation where a few disgruntled workers can misrepresent the situation, falsely reporting instances of non-compliance.
Through the Decent Work Check Survey for company management and trade unions, Gajimu through its interviewers can find out the total population or number of workers working in the surveyed factories, including the number of workers according to their gender and types of employment agreement.
It might be the respondent you selected are all workers that have issues with the factory, how do you make sure to reduce bias in your survey?
By not asking about subjective feelings, and focusing only on objectively observable practices. For instance, 99 workers who would not object to a certain bad condition cannot overrule one worker who is experiencing a bad or even unlawful practice. Even if 99 male workers would not care about a separate room to breast feed, the fact that there is not such a facility and only one woman reports about it is sufficient to report this condition.
How do you do your sampling?
It is important to keep in mind that the surveys are not opinion polls, or market research. We are not measuring subjective sentiments or satisfaction levels. Instead, we are looking for the occurrence of certain working conditions, which can be identified objectively, as facts. So sampling methodologies are not as relevant here, as making sure that we have heard sufficient people allow those who know about bad or unlawful conditions and dare to report them, to do so.
Is there any policy on how many workers surveyed?
To have reliable information, we need to have a certain minimum of respondents. Not all workers will know about all instances of non-compliance, and out of those wo do know, some may be hesistant to report them. So we need sufficient respondents to get reports on all working conditions.
How do you ensure the reliability of the data?
The Decent Work Check Survey has precoded options for answering the survey. So no need to post-code answers and thus no measurement errors in this respect. The routing in the questionnaire also reduces the measurement errors.
What is the error percentage in your survey?
Our surveys are not about opinions, but about factual conditions. So exact percentages and related error margins are not as essential as indications that certain working practices are reported.
Are all questions have “I don’t know” option? Because not all workers know exactly the situation within the factory
'I don't know' answers are offered in most of the questions. Some workers really don't know the answer to the question, e.g. many male workers wouldn't know an answer to the questions about maternity leave. By providing a 'don't know' answer we lower the chance of uninformed responses, increase the chance of completing the surveys, and are able to measure knowledge regarding working conditions and rights according to Labour Law.
If the answer from Factory management is different than workers? How will you address that?
We are hoping factory management representatives will compare their answers with those by workers. When there are differing views on some conditions, we would encourage them to get into dialogues with TU reps about any dissimilarities between workers' views and management views. Such dialogues can lead to situations being partly reassessed, partly addressed, which will be reflected in the next survey among workers.
Find out more about the Decent Work Check and Factory Survey conducted by the Data Academy program, by following one of these links: