ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s health workers continued an ongoing strike for the fifth day running despite two enjoining orders issued by the Colombo District Court against it.
Sri Lanka Federation for Health Professionals started their strike last Monday (07) demanding solutions to seven demands.
Health workers initiated several token strikes in 2021 as well, and on February 06 this year, the announced a continuous island wide strike from the next day onwards.
The demands are as follows
- Approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on July 05, 2021,
- Failure to issue the circular naming the posts in connection with the confirmation of staff ownership.
- With regard to the first class promotion system after 12 years,
- Delay in issuing circulars related to the paramedical and paramedical professions
- Obtaining Cabinet Approval Again for Postponing the Relevant Decision till 01.11.2010 to remove the anomalies.
- Eliminate the parallel pay disparity caused by the elimination of only teacher pay anomalies, maintain the pay policy in a manner that does not violate the Sri Lanka Eligibility Framework and implement Ranuk’s pay committee recommendations.
- In determining the overtime rate, calculate 1/80 of the basic salary for all health care professionals and update the call and sample allowance which has not been updated for 21 years accordingly.
- Establishing the correct salary scale relevant to the professional degree and providing suitable posts / employment opportunities.
- Establishment of a “Health Administration Service” representing all health professionals.
- Special Duty Allowance to Increase to 10,000 rupees
- Transforming health professional services into closed services.
The strike is being carried out by 16 groups of health professionals, including medical laboratory scientists, pharmacists, radiologists, cardiologists, public health inspectors, family health officers and pharmacists.
Following an action filed by the Attorney General on Thursday against the Government Nursing Officers’ Association citing inconvenience to the public, the Colombo District Court issued two enjoining orders against the strike, valid till February 24. One for the enjoining orders was against the convener of the association Saman Rathnapriya.
However, despite the court orders, health workers are continuing the strike for the fifth consecutive day.
Rathnapriya told reporters on Friday (11) that no such orders have been communicated to him officially.
“We got to know through media that an enjoining order has been issued to stop the strike. But it has not been conveyed to me or to the association yet. And striking is a statutory right of ours. If we were summoned to the court, we would have provided our facts,” he said.
A decision on whether or not to stop the strike will be taken by the association after a general meeting in the event an enjoining order is formally issued to them, he said.
“Parallel to the increments in teacher’s salary we are asking for our own salaries’ increment. That responsibility is with the government, the Ministry of Health and the National Salaries Commission. Until that happens it is impossible to stop this strike.”
Meanwhile, the convenor of the Federation for Health Professionals, Ravi Kumudesh on Friday (11) told reporters that the association will take legal actions against the Secretary to the Ministry of Health.
“We are suing the Secretary of Health over the public inconvenience caused by allowing a strike to be prevented,” Kumudesh said.
If the authorities resort to repression when matters can be negotiated, the unions are ready to face it, he said.
Minister of Health Keheliya Rambukwella on Friday said, the authorities expect the workers honour the court order and resume work, ending the inconvenience caused to the public. (Colombo/Feb11/2022)
Lock up all the leaders causing this strike and confiscate all union assets