SL unions want stop to intimidation of employees
Sri Lankan unions are expressing concerns about threats, intimidation and union busting by employers. Joint Secretary of the Free Trade Zones and General Services Employee Union Anton Marcus addressed these concerns in a letter to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe this week, stating that they had previous correspondence and meetings with the Prime Minister and Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade, Malik amarawickrama about violations of labour laws and workers' rights by some employers who are only greedy about profits and not how they earn it.
"As instructed by you at the meeting, Minister Samarawickrama held a meeting with us, his officials also in attendance on May 30, 2016 at his ministry.
Most unfortunately, the discussion though very cordial and participatory, seems to be only taking time with no clear answers and an end to violations of labour laws and workers' rights. A case in point is that in Global Star Logistics (Pvt) Ltd, Seeduwa. Minister Samarawickrama requested me to speak directly to (Finance) Minister Ravi Karunanayake about threats to union leaders there and as requested, I called Minister Karunanayake on May 31, to request for a meeting. Minister Karunanayake's response was quite blunt and arrogant to say the least.
He simply said, he wouldn't discuss anything with "thugs". When pressed for an explanation, he said "workers are thugs". We are at a loss to understand why Global Star Logistics (Pvt) Ltd. employs "thugs", if that is what Minister Karunanayake says.
This is how a growing number of employers respond to workers' efforts in organising themselves into trade unions, a right that Sri Lanka is signatory to and accepts under ILO Conventions 87 and 98 and in our own Constitution as a fundamental right. To further emphasise the growing trend against unionisation and labour rights among employers who nevertheless want to enjoy EU GSP "Plus" with your government promising to regain after almost a 5-year lapse, we wish to highlight very briefly some of the serious violations, as listed below.
The management continuously engages in acts in discriminating and victimising workers who are active members of the branch union. A female worker, Manori Pushpalatha was dismissed after she complained against sexual harassment by a fellow male worker and a sectional manager, but did not take action on the complaint, though the offenders were named in the complaint. Formation of our branch union at this factory on 28th September 2015 immediately led the management to threaten and victimise leading union members forcing office bearers to resign from the union. Working shifts were abruptly changed to harass employees and even attempted to physically attack our branch union office bearers.
After the formation of the branch union the management threatened and intimidated our members and forced them to resign from the union. When our members refused, supervisors in connivance with the so-called Employees' Council (EC) tried to register the EC as a trade union but because of our intervention they could not; so later they registered it with an another name as ICL employees independent but on this, our complaint to the Labour Commissioner (TU) was not acted upon. Now the management has put up a notice stating that they have recognised the man- agement initiated union as a "bargaining agent" of employees and prevents holding of a referendum by the Commissioner of Labour.
Discussions only seem to pave way for re-applying for EU GSP "Plus" and not in putting a firm stop to employer threats, intimidations and union busting work by employers. We therefore wish to once again make a strong appeal to you, to ensure workers' rights including their right to organise themselves in trade unions of their choice, failing which, we would be compelled to seek other means and international complaint mechanisms including the ILO, to find answers to this arrogant and indecent behaviour of employers in denying workers' rights. Such has been delayed to date as we have very clearly said, we would support a Road Map in regaining EU GSP "Plus". As we all know, any international campaign against violations of labour laws and workers' rights would run counter to reapplying for same." (NG)