ABSTRACT
Trade unions in most countries rely on facilitative legislation for their existence, for the economic power they can exert on employers through collective bargaining, and for the collective voice they can command in political matters directly or indirectly. This is also true of contemporary trade unionism in Indonesia. While such legislation is necessary for an effective trade union movement, it may not be a sufficient condition. The state of the economy, the way unions are organized, the competence of their leaders at all levels, the extent of grassroots commitment, their political affiliations and entanglements, and the form of government under which they operate and its attitude to unionism – all these can affect the capacity of unions to meet traditional trade union objectives to improve the pay and conditions of workers.
