New unified employment law to be introduced soon
Sri Lanka government will phase out the implementation of labour market reforms while pushing through a new unified employment law to gradually replace 28 archaic labour legislations currently in force, the Labour and Trade Union Relations Ministry revealed.
The Wages Board Ordinance No.27 of 1941, the Factories Ordinance No.45 of 1942, Shop and Office Employees Act No.19 of 1954, Maternity Benefit Ordinance, and Factories Ordinance will be revised and these laws are to be integrated into a single employment law.
Labour and Trade Union Relations Minister Ravindra Samaraweera while confirming the introduction of this law had informed the National Labour Advisory Committee (NLAC) on Tuesday that trade union leaders will also be consulted before presenting the relevant bill in Parliament, a trade union leader who attended the meeting said.
The minister also noted that a document is now being drafted and that it will be tabled before the NLAC for discussion.
This was a follow up to a process that commenced last October with the participation of all NLAC members representing tripartite interests.
A non-discriminatory provision will be included to the law and there won’t be any discrimination such as gender, caste or religion in future at workplaces and the proposed law will provide provisions for employers to recruit persons for part time jobs.
The ministry will be seeking the trade unions suggestions in consultations, compromise and consensus with the Employers Federation of Ceylon (EFC) accompanying their proposals as well so that it could be pushed for passage in Parliament, a senior ministry official added.
However trade unions say that they are not ready to accept any labour market reforms by the government or the employers deviates from the state labour policy as contained in the National Workers Charter that received the unanimous approval of the NLAC.
The National Workers Charter was promulgated as state labour policy by the then President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga in September 1995.
Welcoming the government’s initiative, EFC Director General /CEO Kanishka Weerasinghe told the Business Times that “we need to keep pace with the developments that are taking place in relation to the ‘world of work’, including the many avenues that are being created through the development of technology”.
The EFC will fully support a process that will bring the country’s labour laws up to date, he said, adding that “we desperately need to implement reforms that will include what employers have sought for a long period of time”.
He noted that employers were in favour of the creation of jobs including “diverse forms of employment” and create a sustainable environment for enterprises to grow and thrive.
The International Development Group of USAID is collaborating with the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade as well as the Ministry of Labour and Trade Union Relations, the EFC and the Attorney General’s department in formulating the new unified legislation.
Joint Secretary of the Free Trade Zones & General Services Employees’ Union Anton Marcus noted that they will oppose any attempts to dismantle the existing labour law regime that gives some measure of protection to workers who have to work to live on a periodic wage.
The employers will be empowered to determine the wages of employees and the payment of gratuity to workers is to be confined to 20 years only in accordance with the provisions of the proposed law, he said.
Work places a with number of employees of 50 or above should pay gratuity for them in accordance with the proposed new law, he said, adding that if the number of employees is less than 50 then there was no necessity to pay the gratuity, he disclosed.
Sri Lanka has a particularly onerous labour regime in terms of the requirements placed on employers with respect to employment of workers, including some of the world’s lengthiest mandatory severance payments for terminated workers, the USAID observed.