Strengthening workers’ human rights in Indonesia’s critical minerals industry

Most pressing risks: safety, decent work, and freedom of association

Participants acknowledged the sector’s strategic importance for Indonesia’s economic and green transition, while recognizing the significant human rights risks that accompany rapid growth. The forum highlighted three priority risk areas requiring immediate action:

• Occupational safety and health (K3)
• Working conditions and wages
• Freedom of association and collective bargaining

These risks are especially severe in industrial zones where oversight capacity is limited and labor standards are inconsistently enforced.

Participants to the roundtable reaffirmed the relevance of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and (upcoming) HREDD legislation in reducing these systemic risks.

Barriers undermining protection

Participants identified systemic obstacles that hinder worker protection:

• Insufficient capacity for labour inspection
• Fragmented and overlapping regulatory frameworks
• Weak local enforcement
• Poor coordination between central and regional authorities
• Limited, inconsistent social dialogue mechanisms

These gaps leave workers and affected communities struggling to access information, justice, and remedies.

Gender Analysis: Women face heightened barriers in the nickel industry Participants identified systemic obstacles that hinder worker protection:

CNV Internationaal presented a new gender analysis revealing severe gender‑specific impacts:

• Limited access to clean water, housing, healthcare, and childcare
• Persistent gaps in maternal and reproductive healthcare
• Frequent denial of lactation rooms and menstrual leave
• Extremely limited access to formal employment in the industry
• Recruitment shaped by age, appearance, and gendered assumptions, excluding women from technical and higher‑paid roles

The study warns that Indonesia’s industrial and green transition risks deepening inequality unless gender equity is embedded at every stage.

Next steps: Coordinated action and long-term collaboration

Participants agreed on several shared action items:

• Clarify and harmonize regulatory frameworks
• Strengthen regional labor inspection and monitoring
• Improve access to grievance and remediation pathways
• Intensify tripartite dialogue within industrial zones

This roundtable marked a crucial first step in building a safe and trusted space for dialogue among key stakeholders in Indonesia’s critical minerals sector. The insights and commitments emerging from this meeting will inform ongoing research, policy engagement, and concrete initiatives to strengthen workers’ human rights across the industry.

This activity is part of CNV Internationaal’s broader efforts within the BOOST HRDD project. Find out more.

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