Unemployment Reduction Strategy in Bekasi Regency

Abstract

ABSTRACT

As the largest industrial area in Southeast Asia, Bekasi Regency faces a paradoxical employment challenge: high investment growth coupled with an Open Unemployment Rate (TPT) persistently above the provincial average—8.82% in 2024 compared to West Java's 7.89%. This study employs a mixed-methods approach, with qualitative methods as the primary design supported by quantitative data, to analyze post-pandemic employment dynamics, the impact of Industry 4.0 penetration, and the profiles of 369 senior-secondary-school job-seeking respondents. Key findings identify a chronic skills mismatch as the root cause: a fundamental misalignment between secondary education graduates' competencies and precision manufacturing industry requirements. Of total unemployed persons, 74% are senior high school graduates, and 62.4% are aged 15–24. BLK (vocational training centres) capacity of only approximately 1,000–1,500 trainees per year falls far short of actual demand, while more than 40% of industrial workers are recruited from outside the region. This study formulates an integrated strategic framework through: (1) digitally-based BLK revitalization targeting 5,000 trainees per year; (2) strengthened local-labour absorption regulations (minimum 50%); (3) a Triple-Helix model linking government, industry, and educational institutions; and (4) economic diversification through SME and creative-sector empowerment. Projections indicate that with consistent strategic intervention, the TPT can be reduced to 6.5% by 2029.

Keywords: structural unemployment, industry 4.0, public policy, skills gap