Recognition of Employee Union Rights

Universitas Islam Sultan Agung (UNISSULA) recognizes the right of all employees to form, join, and participate in lawful trade unions or employee organizations.

This recognition applies to all categories of employees, including academic and non-academic staff, permanent and non-permanent employees, women employees, and international staff.

The university’s recognition of union rights is established through formal employment regulations and reinforced through a university circular issued in 2025.

Formal Recognition in the 2025 Employment Regulations

The 2025 YBW-SA Employment Regulations formally recognize the role of employee unions in employment relations.

The regulations define a collective labour agreement as an agreement resulting from negotiations between one or more registered trade unions or employee unions and YBW-SA, containing the terms of employment as well as the rights and obligations of both parties.

This provision demonstrates that trade unions or employee unions are formally recognized within the institutional employment framework governing UNISSULA.

The regulation therefore acknowledges that employee unions can participate in formal negotiations concerning employment conditions, rights, and responsibilities.

University-Wide Recognition of Union Rights

This recognition was further strengthened in 2025 through UNISSULA Circular No. 8394/J/SA/IX/2025, dated 4 September 2025.

The circular explicitly states that:

UNISSULA recognizes the right of all employees to form, join, and participate in lawful trade unions or employee organizations in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

This recognition applies to all employees, including:

• Lecturers;
• Educational and administrative staff;
• Permanent employees;
• Non-permanent employees;
• Women employees; and
• International staff.

The circular therefore makes clear that union recognition is not limited to one employment category or one demographic group.

Equal Recognition for Women Employees

UNISSULA explicitly includes women employees within its recognition of union rights.

The 2025 circular states that the right to organize applies to women employees together with other staff categories.

The university also has active employee-related organizations involving women. One visible example is IIKKU (Ikatan Istri Karyawan & Karyawati UNISSULA), which holds regular activities involving women within the university community.

The existence of IIKKU provides additional evidence that women are actively represented in employee-related organizational life at UNISSULA.

However, IIKKU is used here as supporting evidence of women’s organizational participation, while the primary evidence for union recognition remains the formal 2025 employment regulations and university circular.

Recognition for International Staff

UNISSULA’s 2025 circular also explicitly extends union recognition to international staff.

The document states that recognition of the right to organize applies to international staff together with lecturers, educational staff, permanent employees, non-permanent employees, and women employees.

This explicit inclusion is important because the university’s recognition is therefore not restricted by nationality.

International staff working at UNISSULA are included within the same institutional framework of lawful employee organization and participation.

Protection from Discrimination and Intimidation

The 2025 circular not only recognizes union participation but also protects employees from adverse treatment arising from union membership or participation.

UNISSULA states that participation or membership in a trade union or employee organization must not become a basis for:

• Discrimination;
• Intimidation;
• Restriction of rights; or
• Other disadvantageous treatment in employment relations.

This strengthens the practical meaning of union recognition because employees are not merely allowed to organize; they are also protected from negative treatment because of lawful participation.

Institutional Responsibility to Respect Union Rights

The circular further requires university leadership across faculties, bureaus, institutions, units, and work units to respect and implement these provisions.

This makes the recognition institution-wide rather than limited to one office or unit.

The circular is formally addressed to:

• Faculty leaders;
• The Director of RSIGM;
• Bureau heads;
• Institution heads;
• UPT heads;
• Unit heads; and
• Heads of administration within UNISSULA.

Formal Status of the 2025 Circular

The circular was issued on 4 September 2025 and signed on behalf of the Rector by the Vice Rector II of UNISSULA.

This provides formal institutional evidence that the recognition of union rights was in place by 2025.

Supporting Employment Framework

The broader 2025 YBW-SA employment framework also recognizes multiple employee categories and formal employment relationships.

The 2025 employment regulations were formally circulated by UNISSULA to university leaders, faculties, bureaus, units, institutions, and other organizational bodies for implementation.

This strengthens the institutional basis of the union-recognition provisions because they are embedded within the wider employment governance framework applicable to UNISSULA employees.

Coverage of Employees

The recognition framework covers the main staff categories at UNISSULA:

The university therefore recognizes union rights across different employment statuses and demographic groups.

Institutional Approach

UNISSULA’s recognition of employee unions can be summarized as follows:

Formal employment regulation
→ recognizes trade unions / employee unions as parties in collective labour agreements

University circular
→ explicitly recognizes the right of all employees to form, join, and participate in lawful unions

Inclusive coverage
→ includes women and international staff

Protection
→ prohibits discrimination, intimidation, restriction of rights, or disadvantage because of union participation

Institution-wide implementation
→ applies across faculties, bureaus, institutions, units, and work units

Contribution to Decent Work and Employment Rights

Through these policies, UNISSULA supports decent work and fair employment relations by recognizing employee representation and collective participation.

The university’s approach supports:

• Freedom of lawful employee organization;
• Collective representation;
• Inclusive participation;
• Equal treatment;
• Protection from retaliation; and
• Constructive employment relations.

These provisions strengthen employee voice and provide a formal basis for workers to participate collectively in matters relating to employment conditions and rights.