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Labour officers withdrawn abruptly: Chaos in Lanka’s foreign missions
View(s):Missions abroad are struggling with migrant issues after labour and welfare officers of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) were abruptly withdrawn, diplomatic sources said.
One embassy reported that it had 591 active female migrant worker welfare complaints and over 1000 active male complaints. These are usually dealt with by the SLBFE officials. The complaints ranged from harassment to underpayment.
Around 60 percent of labour and welfare officers have returned since August 20. However, some have refused to come on the grounds that their contracts are still valid. They have now been given a deadline and told that their salaries will not be paid if they don’t return by then, said Akila Kaushalya, an official from Labour Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva’s office.
The labour and welfare officers were withdrawn so suddenly that, at some missions, not even passwords to a key database–the ‘complaint management system’ which records grievances from workers–were handed over to diplomats who now have to shoulder the workload without expertise. The Sunday Times recently reported that the Labour Ministry decided to shut down labour and welfare sections in overseas embassies and high commissions, including in the West Asian region, and recall staff as a cost-cutting measure. There was no consultation with the heads of the respective missions. And there had also been no handover of duties.
But the recall of nearly 150 officials in 14 countries was done with Cabinet approval, said Mr Kaushalya. “It was done to save the SLBFE from collapse and to ensure people still have jobs after the coronavirus,” he maintained. The ministry decided to downsize because of the global economic downturn, empty airports and sharp fall in foreign employment.
There has been no formal training of diplomatic staff to take over duties. Nor have there been written instructions from Colombo on how to fill the gap.
The lack of resources could lead to stagnation in cases and issues migrant workers face will take longer to resolve, sources warned. “This happened during a demanding time,” one pointed out, adding that functioning with the pandemic has been a challenge in itself.
A suspension in job orders in the long-term is another concern. There are no officials now to vet recruiters in each country. This will cause job opportunities for Sri Lanka to drop. One embassy source said existing resources allowed them to give out one or two a day.
But the money crunch was dire, said Mr Kaushalya. The SLBFE had been eating into the Labour Ministry’s financial reserves just to pay salaries during this period. Evaluation showed that maintenance of their staff abroad accounted for a bulk of expenses. These officials received diplomatic status and the facilities that come with it.
The SLBFE earned less than Rs 40 Mn in revenue last month, he said. But its expenditure is about Rs 940mn a year. Nevertheless, the Bureau was not cutting costs because it was bankrupt, countered Spokesman Mangala Randeniya.
“This is purely a Covid-19 related strategy,” he insisted. The SLBFE’s main income sources were migrant worker registration, license agent and new job order approval fees. As the numbers leaving Sri Lanka dropped this year, revenue has also lessened.
“In the Minister’s view this is a temporary measure to curtail costs, to maintain activities in par with the current income,” he said. “A staff reduction is taking place. External recruits will also be let go of.”
The labour and welfare units were set up in foreign missions in 1994 to protect and look into the welfare of migrant workers; promote and develop new recruitment; and to conduct credibility assessments and authenticate new job orders — calls for workers by companies in each country which the SLBFE then verifies to avoid harm or exploitation.
There is likely to be a gradual return to normalcy at the end of this year or the beginning of 2021. Foreign diplomats in the respective missions will have to take over welfare and labour units till then, Mr Randeniya said.