University non-academic staff Unions warn of intensified TU action
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Members of the University Trade Union Alliance in a protest campaign near Kelaniya University. Pic by Lal S. Kumara
University non-academic staff Trade Unions (TU) warn they are prepared to further intensify their TU action over demands to rectify their salary anomaly issue.
Co-President of the University Trade Union Joint Committee (UTUJC) Dhammika S. Priyantha said their members would “flood the streets of Colombo” on October 3 (Thursday), for a massive show of strength, as a warning to the Government. “Our members from all State Universities, from Jaffna to Ruhuna, will converge on Colombo that day for this protest,” he added.
Mr Priyantha said about 16, 000 non-academic staff members belonging to 27 Unions are on strike at 15 State Universities and 15 State-run Higher Education Institutions, which entered its 18th day on Friday (27).
He further said that the TUs had been informed that Higher Education Minister Rauff Hakeem is to present a Cabinet Memorandum on Tuesday (1), acknowledging the salary anomaly faced by striking university non-academic staff and requesting the Government to rectify the anomaly. “We will see if the Cabinet responds positively to it. Nevertheless, we still plan on carrying out our protest on Thursday,” he remarked.
Mr Priyantha said they had already spoken with other TUs in the University sector, including the Inter University Students’ Federation, Medical Faculty Students’ Action Committee and the Medical Faculty Students’ Parents Association. “All of them have expressed support for our TU action. We are now in the process of briefing TUs in other sectors regarding our struggle, with the aim of creating a broad front,” he further said.