Labour and Human Rights

Musim Mas firmly opposes forced or trafficked labour and strictly prohibits child labour in our operations. Our recruitment policy includes age verification, ensuring no one under 18 is employed. In 2022, there were no reported cases of child labor. We’ve integrated measures, including interviews, to prevent underage, forced, or trafficked labour. These policies are regularly communicated to employees and unions.

Despite cultural challenges, especially among smallholders with family members under 18, we actively address this through socialization programs. These programs emphasize the importance of education and children’s rights in the plantation context. To support this, Musim Mas provides schools and childcare centers in and around our plantations, ensuring parents can work without concerns about their children’s safety and education.

Musim Mas does not tolerate sexual harassment in the workplace and maintains a policy of non-discrimination. To address harassment and assault, we’ve established procedures ensuring complainant anonymity and preventing interference throughout the investigation and escalation procedure. The procedure is also regularly communicated to workers.

The Musim Mas Gender Committee, an elected body comprising men and women, reviews policies pertaining to human rights and equality in the workplace, ensures vulnerable groups (such as women and children) are aware of their rights and that those rights are accessible whenever necessary, such as menstruation leave and breastfeeding facilities. The committee also addresses issues or key aspects such as sexual assault, domestic abuse, victim support, and facilitating resolutions with management guidance.

The Committee disseminates policies, conducts socialization, and routinely visits workers’ houses and schools to expand the coverage of training and socialization on gender critical issues. address harassment cases. External training ensures proper handling, and we’re standardizing disciplinary systems with defined roles and an integrated investigation process for objectivity in sanctions.

Musim Mas prioritizes merit-based employment and promotion, regardless of race, nationality, religion, age, or union affiliation. We ensure equal treatment and fair rewards for competency and experience.

Male and female workers receive equal entry-level wages regardless of gender. We ensure equal opportunities are provided through access to job vacancy and promotion.

Musim Mas staff and workers, including temporary workers, are paid at least the minimum wage in their respective regions, and their employment conditions comply with all local and national labour legislation. Male and female workers across Sumatra and Kalimantan receive equal entry-level wages regardless of gender.

In addition, we provide workers at our upstream operations with in-kind benefits, including housing, healthcare, electricity, water, transportation, separation pay, termination pay, childcare, and education for school-age children. We annually assess living wages at our Indonesian operations, and workers’ salaries and in-kind benefits are aligned with Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and other living wage calculations.

Time and payroll records transparently reflect all hours worked, ensuring proper compensation. Ongoing dialogue with unions and government bodies guides our efforts to establish better policies for working hours in the palm oil industry.

Musim Mas’ family-friendly practices at our plantations and mills help working couples. We provide parental leave, on-site education for school-age children, scholarships for secondary school students, and childcare facilities. We support expecting and new mothers with healthcare education, prenatal and postnatal healthcare services, and breastfeeding stations at our facilities. We have enacted specific employment policies for women with infants.

Recognizing water scarcity, we’ve implemented a water rationing system, providing a steady supply of clean water to worker households. Consistent socialization promotes water efficiency, contributing to sustainable practices in our communities.

All employees are free to join the labour union of their choice and participate in union meetings. We maintain positive relationships between management and union representatives and hold regular meetings to discuss wages, benefits, leave, and other employment issues. We also support our employees in Indonesia by regularly collecting their feedback through bipartite cooperation committees or Lembaga Kerja Sama (LKS) Bipartit, comprising company representatives and workers.

We respect the right of our employees to engage in collective bargaining agreements (CBAs), and 100% of our employees in Indonesia are covered by CBAs that comply with government regulations. Employees in Indonesia have access to transparent CBAs and clauses on CBA are consulted in collective manner with all workers and the union. We communicate the availability of CBAs during union meetings and morning briefings, distribute CBAs to field supervisors, and make them available at estate, mill, and union offices, so workers can access and consult them.

Some employees in other countries of operation are part of collective bargaining agreements or unions, depending on the country’s legislation.

All workers have access to a transparent and accountable grievance mechanism without fear of reprisal or dismissal.

Our internal, site-level grievance procedure has been communicated to our workers and we regularly post reminders about the system on public boards. Employees can raise complaints through suggestion boxes located around our operations, through grievance logbooks at administrative offices, over the phone to Public Affairs Department (Hubungan Masyarakat), or through the worker union. Complaints filed with supervisors are escalated to mill managers and all grievances are either processed within a week or are raised in regular management meetings for discussion and resolution.

For more information on our grievance mechanism, refer here.

We provide a safe and healthy workplace for all our employees. Our occupational safety and health (OSH) policy complies with national laws and regulations, as well as ILO guidelines. Group-level senior management oversees and reviews the performance of the OSH management system, including performance goals and continuous improvement programs.

A committee responsible for Safety, Health and Environmental Quality is set up at each operation to enforce the protocols and standards for safety. They are responsible for identifying potential hazards and ensuring the availability and optimal condition of safety equipment. They meet quarterly to discuss safety issues and concerns, and meeting outcomes are reported to the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower. The committee is chaired by the highest-ranking person responsible for the safety of company personnel.

Safety is everybody’s responsibility. We conduct regular training and safety drills, including basic safety training, first aid and emergency response procedures, fire-fighting drills and socialization of material data safety sheet for chemicals. We also inculcate the habit of donning adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), such as gloves, helmets, boots, masks and safety clothing. We have built safety criteria into our employees’ personal performance evaluations.

There are many clinics and first aid kits strategically located across our plantations to ensure immediate medical attention. Workers who handle herbicides and pesticides are provided with monthly medical check-ups. We maintain records on illnesses, which are summarized in monthly reports, and dominant health issues are analyzed so that action plans can be prepared to limit their occurrence or prevent their spreading. Information on health issues is socialized among all workers as a preventive measure.

As a result, the total number of accidents reported in our operations has been decreasing year on year (refer to our Sustainability Report for details). We are constantly working on reducing accident severity, as well as ensuring that all workers are adequately prepared and equipped for higher-risk activities.

Musim Mas takes employee fatalities extremely seriously. We investigate every fatal incident and take appropriate measures to eliminate such accidents from our workplaces. Procedures and risk assessments are reviewed and revised where necessary, to minimize these occupational risks and hazards. We also reinforce supervision and safety management with intensive trainings to promote greater awareness amongst employees throughout our operations.