The Suffering of Women Oil Palm Laborers in the Midst of Climate Crisis, From Miscarriages to Near Blindness

JAMBI— Regulations have not fully protected the rights of women laborers who work in oil palm plantations, including health protection because they work outdoors in the midst of a climate crisis. 

When working, they are exposed to the scorching sun 5-6 hours every day. The average temperature of the dry season is in the range of 33-35 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, work targets continue to increase. 

Female oil palm workers who work outdoors experience many health problems, ranging from miscarriages, dehydration, fainting, myopia, chronic cough, itching in the pubic area and acute respiratory infections. 

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Saraswati, not her real name, suffered a miscarriage. She lives in Sarolangun Regency, Jambi. Company rules prohibit pregnant women from coming to work. 

Worker miscarries 

“It was my own fault, knowing that I was pregnant, I still insisted on working. Now I have given up,” Saraswati said resignedly, when met by Kompas.com at her house in early September. 

She said she only realized she was pregnant after being examined by the village midwife. Her intention to take a day off work, she said, would be conveyed directly to the foreman.  

After all, the village midwife examination occurred in the middle of the month. Saraswati also felt that she had to complete the work until the end of the month. It's not bad that her daily labor fee of less than Rp100,000 per day can be saved for her future childbirth. 

Her husband, who does odd jobs, encourages Saraswati to work hard to make ends meet. At night, she works on cake orders until late. 

After delivering the cakes to the customers, the morning was still dimly lit and she rushed to the plantation at the back of the village. At that time, the oil palm plants were only 2-3 years old. Still very low. 

As usual, the dry month was very hot. Her body was already flooded with sweat starting at 09.00 WIB. Because she was in a hurry, she only brought a bottle of water. By 11:30 a.m., her drinking water was gone. 

Her mouth felt dry, but she had to complete the target of about one hectare or 120 palms. She had to clear almost two meters of weeds from the palms, all around.  

“At first I was weak, then my hands were shaking. My head hurt, I thought I had an ulcer. Then nosebleeds, blood came out of my nose,” Saraswati said, recounting the incident a year ago. 

She took the initiative to rest for a moment under a palm tree, spreading a long cloth for shade. But after only a moment of sitting, the foreman passed by. Saraswati hurried to get up, but suddenly her eyes widened. It was dark.

She only realized it after she was in the hospital. An intravenous drip had been inserted into her left hand. The doctor said Saraswati was severely dehydrated and exhausted. So she was bleeding. 

“I cried, my chest felt crushed. The doctor said I had a miscarriage. The first child we dreamed of is now gone,” said the woman with crystals in the corners of her eyelids. 

She had already fallen down the stairs. The hospital fees had to be borne by herself. Because she did not have a social security organizing body (BPJS) card. 

“It doesn't matter if you pay for it yourself, the important thing is not to get fired,” said Saraswati. 

Meanwhile, Head of the National Family Planning Coordinating Board (BKKBN) Hasto Wardoyo said in a webinar that climate change can trigger various pregnancy problems, such as premature birth or miscarriage. 

In addition, said Hasto, referring to various studies, the climate crisis has affected conditions that cause stunted fetal growth. The potential for stunting increases. 

Excessive heat stroke can increase cases of Preeclampsia, which is the blood pressure of pregnant women rising after 20 weeks of pregnancy, when it is usually normal. The risk of death during childbirth is more exposed.  

Hasto has been aware of the impact of the climate crisis on women. The target of reducing the maternal mortality rate to 70 per 100,000 population by 2030 is still a challenge.  

“Last year the maternal mortality rate was 189 per 100,000 population. Then this year the figure is 183 per 100,000 population. We hope it continues to fall,” he said.  

What Hasto mentioned is in line with research that appeared in the Journal of Global Health initiated by the World Health Organization (WHO). The result is that extreme hot weather has caused premature birth, the leading cause of child death.  

Every additional one degree Celsius, at a daily minimum temperature above 23.9 degrees Celsius, is proven to increase the risk of infant death by 22.4 percent. 

Furthermore, elderly people are more likely to suffer heart attacks or respiratory problems.

Oil palm worker almost blind 

For oil palm laborer AI, a 47-year-old from Nipah Panjang, East Tanjung Jabung District, Jambi, her job is to spray weeds with herbicide liquid. 

In the hot mid-2017, she worked as usual. Since 10:00 a.m., the heat has been felt. She admits that the sun is getting hotter. 

In AI's mind, the target must be completed immediately. So when it was 11.00 am, she filled the spray tank with grass poison. 

“The weather was very hot. ... I wanted to pour the grass poison into the tank, which already had water. Suddenly the water squirted into my eyes,” said AI. 

That's not usually the case. Maybe she lost concentration and was tired because it was so hot.  

She was never provided with safety equipment such as masks, glasses, and protective clothing by the company. Therefore, the herbicide liquid, which suddenly overflowed, immediately came into contact with her eyes. 

AI at that time could not immediately wash her eyes because there was no clean water. She could only wipe them with a cloth. She was forced to go home to clean her eyes and face. 

Initially, she did not complain. But four days later, her eyes hurt. 

“I got home around 12:00 WIB. It was washed off, gone. After four days, it stung and I couldn't see,” she said. 

Both eyes were examined at the Nipah Panjang Community Health Center. Health workers immediately referred her to a hospital in Jambi City. If not treated immediately, there is the potential for AI to experience blindness. 

“The doctor said, if we don't seek treatment in Jambi immediately, we could go blind,” she said. 

The medical expenses were paid with her own funds. There was no compensation from the company. AI spent Rp2 million, not including transportation costs and food needs.  

Just like other workers, she did not have BPJS Health. 

She underwent treatment for two days. Although the doctor allowed her to go home, she could not work immediately. It took a month to heal. But after recovering, her eyes were not alert enough to see. She suffered from myopia.

Trauma enveloped AI. She moved from spraying to being a fertilizer worker or weed cutter. Seven years later, in April 2024, she dared to take on the task of spraying herbicides. Instead, she got a nosebleed. 

“I didn't faint, just blood coming out of my nose. I immediately went home,” said AI.

Increased salary, increased work 

AI's job risks are very high, especially working in the midst of a climate crisis. Companies sometimes give more workloads, after raising wages. 

“I can no longer work mupuk, the target is more. Now it's 12 sacks (one sack contains 50 kilograms) a day. In the past, it was around 8 sacks,” she said. 

In addition to nosebleeds, when the heat is intense, AI feels a headache, which is excruciating.  

She felt she couldn't take it anymore and chose to quit her oil palm labor job. It has been a month since she started a gallon business with her husband. 

Siti, a 46-year-old laborer at the same company, also felt the impact of exploitation. With the excuse of increased wages of Rp121,000 per day, her work targets have increased. 

She has to fertilize around 143 oil palm plants on one hectare of land. This is done from morning to evening. The foreman and field assistants only give Siti a moment to rest, not caring about the heat. 

“One hectare, one day, five rows of trees times 27 rows, so around 143 trunks. Sometimes more. It depends on the foreman. If it's the current foreman, oh my. He rests for less than 15 minutes, then stands up immediately. I can't do it, I have to go home according to the time,” she said. 

Siti has worked there for a dozen years. However, the company has never covered her health costs. When she is unwell, she seeks treatment herself. 

“Once, I had an itch, took medicine. There is no responsibility from the company. There is no BPJS employment,” she said. 

Not only that, the increase in temperature exacerbates the field conditions. Siti sometimes feels a headache due to the extreme heat.  

“As long as it's too hot, I start to get a headache,” she said. 

Meanwhile, most of the equipment to spray and cut down pests is also borne by the workers themselves. The company only provides tanks and spray poison. 

“The buckets are from us. Our machetes too,” she said. 

Workers vomit blood 

This mother of three understands the risks of using herbicides without safety equipment. So she works carefully. You have to look at the direction of the wind when spraying. 

“I have never been hit in the eye,” she said. One of my friends got it because she was going against the wind,” she said.

Her new laborer friend was almost blinded. Not understanding the field conditions, the friend sprayed downwind. So a lot of poison was inhaled and she vomited blood. 

“There was one who was new to the job, she vomited blood. Maybe it was because she was working against the wind and inhaled the poison,” she said. 

With the labor problem, Tina (44) said that the company had promised to build a clinic around the work area. However, it has not materialized. 

“... Yesterday there was a proposal, a clinic for employees, hopefully it will happen,” she said. 

She also hopes that companies pay attention to the health of workers and do not set excessive working hours without adequate rest.  

“The working hours should not be too long. Let us take a break,” she hopes. 

For her, working in the dry season is very tortuous for laborers, especially women. “One month of drought is like a year,” she said.

Based on data from the Jambi Province Plantation Office, 186 oil palm companies control around 550,000 hectares of land. With that number, if it is assumed that one hectare has one laborer, then the number of female oil palm laborers reaches 550,000. 

Women workers are neglected 

Ida Zubaida, Director of Beranda Perempuan, said that even without the adverse effects of the climate crisis, women laborers at oil palm plantations are already suffering.  

The labor law, continued Ida, has not yet protected the rights of women workers. The government and companies even ignore their needs such as living wages. 

According to the findings of Beranda Perempuan, more than 90 percent of women workers receive wages below the provincial minimum wage (UMP). They are not provided with personal protective equipment for occupational safety and health.  

When working, women workers are constantly exposed to chemicals from fertilizers and pesticides. Hazardous and toxic chemicals that accumulate in the body can cause health problems and death. 

“If women workers are on maternity leave, they don't get paid. Casual laborers are paid when they work. Even those who have worked for more than one year have never been made employees,” said Ida. 

In the last decade, female oil palm laborers have been working outdoors in the sweltering heat. Many of them fainted, had nosebleeds and experienced reproductive disorders such as pubic itching. 

The climate crisis has made water sources disappear. With the loss of water in the workplace, some women are forced to hold their urine. In the long run, they will develop kidney disease. 

MP, a former oil palm laborer, is now 55 years old and has had three kidney surgeries. While working at the oil palm plantation, she often held her urine because of the limited water. 

Beranda Perempuan's research revealed that one family of oil palm workers had chronic lung disease. 

“For more than a year, one family's lungs have been damaged, due to exposure to smoke during (a) fire,” said Ida. 

After months of not working due to illness, they were fired. The company did not provide money for treatment. They bought lung medication and oxygen at their own expense.  

“They hope for help from the government, to access free treatment,” said Ida. 

Not only are female workers affected by the haze, but children suffer from acute respiratory infections, too.  

The climate crisis has dried up water sources in peatlands, leading to fires. If the fire is not extinguished immediately, people who inhale the smoke will experience health problems.

Airlangga University Law lecturer Jani Purnwanty said informal laborers working outdoors are under heavy pressure amid the climate crisis. They experience multiple impacts.

Laborers need special rules 

There are no special rules to protect women workers, guarding them from health problems due to the climate crisis. “There are no special rules to address climate change,” said Jani. 

Work safety rules can protect workers from the climate crisis. The problem is that it is for  formal workers. The women workers are not employees. 

“When the sun's rays get hotter, women laborers are more vulnerable and become victims time and time again,” said Jani. 

Women laborers who work at oil palm plantations have no choice. They do not receive information that working outside in the heat for a long time will have a negative impact on their health. 

With many cases of women affected by the climate crisis at work, Jason Kai Wei Lee, Director of the Heat Resilience and Performance Center, National University of Singapore, said the government must immediately formulate policies to protect women workers. 

He said the Singapore government has enacted a hot weather law through enhanced measures for outdoor workers, effective October 2023.  

For example, employers must monitor the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) and provide mandatory breaks when the temperature exceeds 32 degrees Celsius.  

“Singapore wants to reduce heat-related illnesses and ensure a safer work environment,” Jason said during the Pulitzer Center-supported webinar Too Hot To Work: Progress and Challenges in Heat Legislation for Worker Protection. 

According to Jason, heat stress has a serious impact on workers' safety and health, as they are exposed to higher daily temperatures and more frequent and severe heat waves. 

In the long term, workers can develop serious and debilitating chronic illnesses, impacting the cardiovascular and respiratory systems as well as the kidneys. 

Jason's research shows that the more breaks workers take in the heat, the more productive they are.