Trade unions call for political action to protect EPF
While calling for political action to protect the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), 16 trade unions have joined hands to demand the government to establish a tripartite consultative committee ensuring the proper management of the fund.
”The time has come for trade unions to take to the streets and rally round masses creating awareness on the dwindling (levels) of EPF as a result of making bad investments in the stock market and misusing funds by the authorities,” Convener and General Secretary of the Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees’ Union (FTZ&GSEU) Anton Marcus told a media conference in Colombo this week.
He noted that there is an urgent need to organise 2.5 million workers in the private sector who contribute part of their earnings every month expecting some financial benefit after their retirement as there is danger of ‘eating out’ the money by the government authorities. As an initial step towards taking political action to protect the EPF, representatives of trade unions have launched a campaign to distribute leaflets among the public in Nugegoda on Thursday with the aim of issuing a warning on the consequences of massive stock market manipulation rackets involving the EPF and certain white collar criminals resulting in heavy losses to the fund, he said.
This malpractice was also highlighted in the 2011 Auditor Generals report, he said, adding that it is a national tragedy that the EPF has still not submitted to Parliament its audited accounts for the years 2012 and 2013 as required by law.
Awareness campaigns on the plight of the EPF will be carried out countrywide and if the government fails to implement their demand of appointing a tripartite consultative committee with representatives of employees, employers and the government to manage the fund, then they will intensify their agitation campaign, he disclosed.
General Secretary of the Ceylon Federation of Trade Unions, D.W. Subasinghe revealed that the proposal to establish a tripartite advisory committee which was to be included in an amendment to the EPF Act submitted to the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC) in 2010 had been removed in mysterious circumstances.
He said that Labour Minister Gamini Lokuge told the NLAC that this proposal was forwarded in a cabinet paper on two occasions, but it was held up.
Mr. Subasinghe said that they are agitating the government to implement the same proposal which was made by MP Pieter Keuneman in 1958 at the debate on the EPF Bill in parliament in which he argued the inclusion of persons from trade unions and the Employers Federation of Ceylon in the management of the EPF. This is reported in Hansard of 3rd April 1958, he revealed.
Mr. Subasinghe emphasised the need for political action to win their demand as the government will not respond to demands made by trade unions.