Increasing labor social security membership for informal workers in Indonesia

Social security is a fundamental human right and a crucial mechanism for ensuring workers’ well-being. In Indonesia, the government, through BPJamsostek, provides equitable social security coverage for all workers. However, participation in labor social security (LSS) for marginalized workers, incredibly informal workers in Indonesia, is still low. This study examines the social security coverage for informal workers under the LSS program, utilizing data from the 2019 National Labor Force Survey. Employing both descriptive and inferential analysis, the findings reveal that participation in LSS among informal workers is significantly low. The logistic regression analysis indicates that the likelihood of formal workers enrolling in LSS is 29.11 times higher than that of informal workers. Additionally, income level significantly positively impacts LSS participation among informal workers. Those with intersecting vulnerabilities—such as low income, low education, living in rural areas, and working in the services sector—exhibit the lowest probability of LSS membership. Social security institutions should implement extensive awareness campaigns to enhance participation rates, mainly targeting rural workers, introduce subsidies for low-income workers, and simplify payments and benefit utilization to encourage enrollment in the LSS program.