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Ports crisis entering stormier seas
The Joint Trade Union Front says it called off its trade union action two days before the National New Year. Pix by Romesh Danushka Silva
The dispute between trade unions and Sri Lanka Port Authority (SLPA) Chairman Dhammika Ranatunga is likely to enter stormier seas in the coming week with both sides refusing to drop anchor and firing fresh salvos at each other.
The Joint Trade Union Front says it called off its trade union action two days before the National New Year after a meeting with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, but now its members are being harassed by the SLPA chairman.
In a letter fired off to Chairman Ranatunga, who is the brother of Ports Minister Arjuna Ranatunga, the trade union this week charged that its members were being subjected to disciplinary inquiries and denied overtime, while container drivers who are on probation were being trained to do the work of crane operators who were members of the trade union.
The union also charged that leaflets defamatory of union members were being circulated by certain parties close to the ports minister and the SLPA chairman.
The letter was signed by the UNP affiliated Jathika Sevaka Sangamaya (JSS) Port Branch President, Udeni Kaluthanthri, and the SLFP-affiliated Sri Lanka Nidhas Sevaka Sangamaya Port Branch President, Prasanna Kalutarage. They are the joint conveners of the Joint Trade Union Front.
They also charged that in another act of harassment, the privilege some of the workers had enjoyed to engage in full time trade union activities had been withdrawn.
The fresh allegations against the SLPA chief come as Labour Minister John Seneviratne, who heads a committee appointed by the Prime Minister, prepares to meet trade union leaders on Tuesday in a bid to settle the dispute.
The Prime Minister held discussions with the union leaders on April 11 and persuaded the unions to suspend their trade union action. The unions agreed to suspend trade union action after the Premier gave them an assurance that part of their bonus would be paid before the National New Year, and steps would be taken to address their grievances.
Mr. Kalutarage told the Sunday Times that at Tuesdays’ meeting, they would stick to their original demands and insist that the workers be paid incentive allowances in keeping with the current standards, that the proposed lease of a 50-acre land to the Colombo Dockyard Ltd be stopped and that the SLPA should disclose details of its new human resource management plan.
The union leader said that during their talks with the Prime Minister, they pointed out that the SLPA chairman had been abusing his authority since his appointment and called for his removal. But Mr. Ranatunga claimed no such matter was raised at the meeting.
The union leader also charged that the ports’ resources were being misused by the minister and the SLPA chairman.
“Six air conditioners were bought on our request to be installed in the rest room of the port workers at the Jaya Container Terminal (JCT). These air conditioners were removed and installed at the chairman’s and the minister’s official residences in Modara,” he said.
The SLPA chairman dismissed these allegations as baseless. He said these allegations were being levelled against him and his brother because the union members were against the measures they had taken to cut down on excesses and waste at the SLPA.
“Some workers are claiming 800 hours of overtime payments for a month. Abuses such as this are leading to huge losses at the port. We are trying to put things in order, but due to trade union actions, our programme has been hampered,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Ports Ministry in a statement questioned the legality of the Joint Trade Union Front, saying it was not even registered with the SLPA. The ministry said it would not recognise the trade union front and, without such recognition, its action amounted to sabotage.
The ministry in a another statement said that during the discussions held with the Prime Minister, there were no calls for the removal of the SLPA Chairman or the Minister and misleading information to this effect was being leaked to the media by interested parties.
The ministry added that the port had lost millions of rupees in revenue as a result of the the trade union action since April 7.