Protest by Sri Lanka Telecom manpower workers

The request for permanent employment

Workers hired by Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) from manpower supplying companies staged a protest yesterday outside the Fort head office with three of them climbing a telecom tower urging the authorities to absorb them into the permanent cadre. The SLT’S All-workers’ Union Deputy Treasurer Chaminda Weerasinghe told Daily Mirror the they staged a protest to focus attention on the need to absorb all those hired from such companies to the permanent cadre.

“We have been hired from manpower supplying companies and have worked at the SLT for eight years. Heeding to our request a budget proposal was introduced last year to absorb us to the permanent cadre. Nearly 121 were absorbed leaving behind more than 2,000 others. We discussed this matter with subject Minister Harin Fernando, Labour and Trade Union Relations Minister W. D.J. Seneviratne and they both assured us that we will be made permanent. Even President Maihripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe are of the opinion that we should be made permanent. But a few trade unions are blocking this move,” he said and added that this the reason for staging the protest. Minister Fernando who commented on the matter said his ministry went ahead and decided to absorb qualified workers to the permanent cadre. “In this process the 121 workers who had the necessary qualifications were made permanent in keeping with recruitment rules,” he said. The minister said some of the workers who were over 36 years old would also be absorbed shortly as they had reached the age of 35 after joining SLT.

“We will also absorb the rest to the permanent cadre after after a period of training so that they will have the minimum qualification as required by state recruitment rules,” the minister said, adding that the unions representing the permanent staff might resort to trade union action if the workers supplied by the manpower companies were made permanent overnight.

He said there were other technical issues as well because 48 per cent of SLT revenue is spent on salaries unlike some other private telecom service providers who spends only seven per cent of their revenue for salaries and wages.

We have been hired from manpower supplying companies and have worked at the SLT for eight years. Heeding to our request a budget proposal was introduced last year to absorb us to the permanent cadre