Twenty-two unions have written to Labor Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva requesting that immediate action be taken to reinstate 16 employees who were unjustly sacked due to the formation of a trade union at ATG Gloves Knitting Pvt Ltd in Wathupitiwala.
On August 20, 2021, the Commercial and Industrial Workers’ Union, a trade union affiliated to the United Federation of Trade Unions, established a trade union branch of ATG Gloves Knitting Pvt. Ltd. in Wathupitiwala.
As soon as the Chamber of Commerce and Industry informed the company of the establishment of this branch union, the company dismissed 16 members of the union within four days.
In a letter to Labor Minister Nimal Siripala, the trade union leaders recalled that when the Minister raised the issue at the National Labor Advisory Council meeting on August 24, 2021, representatives of the Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees Union and the Inter Company Employees Union, ATG The company has been focusing on dismantling and unjustified labor practices of similar unions that it has been operating for years.
It has been a month since the break-up of the ATG trade unions in Wathupitiwala, but the trade union leaders allege that the Labor Department has not yet taken steps to launch an investigation into the company’s unfair labor practices.
The letter to the Minister of Labor further emphasized that the ATG Company in Wathupitiwala would continue its production activities without any influence or interference despite such a serious illegal activity.
However, the 16 employees who were sacked due to joining a trade union and their families are out of work and today, in the midst of the Covid epidemic, they are struggling to cover the cost of daily necessities, including food and medicine.
Free Trade Zone factory owners are well aware that laid-off workers agree to a minor settlement as labor lawsuits continue. When workers who have been laid off after years of litigation resolve their grievances, the union is no longer active in the factory because new workers are reluctant to risk their jobs by joining the union.
Although the Industrial Disputes Act was amended in 1999 to legislate against unfair labor practices, law enforcement has been slow and inefficient. Therefore, despite the rules in the books, employers have been able to break up unions because they have no protection from employees when they try to form unions. ”
According to union representatives, the number of cases filed in magistrates’ courts over the past 21 years is a testament to their unjustified labor practices.
In such a backdrop, the trade union leadership has in its letter requested the Minister to intervene in this matter and ensure that the dismissed employees are reinstated. Trade union leaders say no company can continue to operate in free trade zones without the permission and consent of the Sri Lankan government. Therefore, the rights of employees and job security can be guaranteed.
“In the absence of government intervention, workers and workers’ organizations will have to rely on international institutions.” Therefore, the trade union leaders have called on Labor Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva to intervene in the issue of violating labor laws, as it is in the national interest to strengthen the confidence of workers and trade unions that the government has the ability to protect workers’ rights, especially the right to organize.
They further requested the government to intervene and question the illegal actions of the ATG Company in Wathupitiwala against its 16 employees.
The following unions have also added their signatories to the letter sent to the Minister of Labor by DW Subasinghe, General Secretary of the Ceylon Federation of Trade Unions
Ceylon Bank Employees Union, Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees Union, Ceylon Estate Services Union, Ceylon Trade Industries and General Employees Union, Sri Lanka Free Employees Union, Sri Lanka Merchant Sailors Union, Inter Company Employees Union, Postal and Telecommunication Officers Union , Garment and Textile Workers Union, Ceylon Teachers Union, National Trade Union Front, National Employees Union, Information and Telecommunication All Employees Union, Telecom Engineering Diploma Holders Union, Independent Port Employees Union, Insurance Employees Union, Ceylon Workers Federation, Media Employees Trade Unions Federation, Protect Union, Dabindu Collective Union, Stand Up Employees Union, United Labor Federation