Everyone should join the struggle to make Sri Lanka a developed nation by 2048 and change the existing system, Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara said.
He said they should not be afraid to make unpopular decisions, similar to what the United National Party (UNP) did in the past for the greater good of the nation.
The Minister further said that this year Sri Lanka’s outdated Labour Law will be changed and the name of the UNP and the President will be etched in history for the effort.
“Today we offer our revolutionary salute to all the workers who toil hard to develop the country and to the expatriate workers who send money for us to get medicine, food and fuel” the Minister said.
When the workers were left helpless in the country that suffered from the economic collapse that started with the last Covid epidemic, we did not see appropriate decisions being made for the safety of their lives. Instead, again the workers were made a political tool. They always branded our party as an enemy of the workers. But the following efforts have been taken by us;
- Establishment of the Employees Trust Fund
- Increasing the interest rate given to the Employees’ Provident Fund contributors.
- Absorbing informal employees as regular employees.
- Introduction of a compensation formula in case of dismissal of employees.
- Introducing the Labour Disputes Act.
- Establishing financial stability for the future of employees by passing the Gratuity Act.
Minister Manusha Nanayakkara made the remarks while speaking at the UNP May Day convention at the Sugathadasa Stadium in Colombo yesterday.
The Minister also presented eleven proposals encompassing necessary reforms in the labour sector in order to make Sri Lanka a developed country by the year 2048. The members of the United National Party raised their hands and approved the proposals.
Presenting the proposals, the Minister said: “We still have archaic labour laws, a labour law which turns away investors. In our country with a population of over 20 million, there are only a handful of tax-paying companies. There are only 80,000 institutions which contribute to the EPF and ETF. The standard of living of the worker is falling day by day. Isn’t this why the workers’ lives were so insecure during this crisis?”
It is the aim of our party and the President, to create a secure human resource in the future instead of the leftist poor worker.
Also, by creating more entrepreneurs, the challenge we face is to create a strong product as well as a strong labour force. We want to create a country that can face any economic situation in the future, he said.
Minister Manusha Nanayakkara said as a party with universal virtues, freed from racist, religious and narrow frameworks, which won the country’s freedom, as well as a party with a liberal philosophy, the following proposals are submitted for a strong and secure human resource in the future.
- Formulate and adopt in the legislature a unified labour legal system that promotes small and medium-scale entrepreneurship, while protecting labour rights and ensuring social protection of workers.
- Implementing a series of active and effective programmes to increase the number of employees, who contribute to the Employees’ Provident Fund, to increase the number of organizations that contribute, and also to include those employed in the informal sector in the Employees’ Provident Fund.
- An extensive social security network should be implemented to stabilize an open economic policy in the country. To implement a wide social security network for the workers of the informal sector, who are not included in the formal social security systems in the country’s economy, and to implement a contributory insurance system in the event of termination of employment or loss of employment, such as is implemented in the developed countries of the world.
- Implementation of strategic programmes to create a human resource suitable for the modern world of work that can conquer the next generation and will contribute economically and effectively in a way that suits the strategic programme to become a developed country by 2048.
- Digitization of the labour sector and foreign employment sector to create an economically productive human resource and to ensure the safety and welfare of expatriate workers.
- As recognized by the International Labour Organization, making necessary legal provisions to ensure the safety and health of workers in all workplaces, and respecting occupational safety and health is a fundamental right.
- Develop a formal legal framework to prevent gender-based discrimination in the workplace, increase women’s labour force participation, and pay maternity benefits to employed women through a social security fund.
- To create a programme to protect the pride, dignity and professionalism of regular workers in any profession.
- Taking necessary steps to encourage disabled and people with special needs as human resources.
- Creating a plantation worker fit for the modern world of work, with a mechanism to ensure their rights and welfare.
- Implementation of a national market information system based on private and public labour markets with the aim of gathering large-scale data for the compilation of profiles for the technological changes that will occur in the future world of work.
Today on May 1, 2023, at Sugathadasa Indoor Sports Stadium, Colombo at the UNP May Day convention held under the theme ‘Victory by 2048’ I Manusha Nanayakkara as the Labour Minister of the current Government present this resolution consisting of 11 proposals intended to tear down the traditional thinking relegating our worker as leftist poor and to create a rich and energetic human resource suitable for the modern digital world.
The Minister invited the leaders and members of our party to approve this resolution. The proposals were approved by all those who participated in the United National Party May Day convention.
Minister Manusha Nanayakkara, who addressed the May rally after the adoption of the resolution, also said:
First, you belong to the human race. Secondly, only after that, you become a worker. Thirdly, you become a trade union member and activist. This was told by Bala Tampoe. This was his thinking. Why I recalled the name of Bala Tampoe today is because when former President J.R. Jayawardene tried to rebuild the country and uplift it from where it had fallen, the so-called tripartite national parties and the so-called labour organizations tried to reverse that programme. However, Bala Tampoe did not take part in such actions.
Even today, when great changes are being made in this country, various trade unions and political parties are trying to scuttle them. However, trade unions affiliated with the United National Party will fearlessly face such efforts and will support the programme that will move the country forward. It was the United National Party that worked to build the country when the people were suffering without medicine, oil, and gas. In the past, the UNP worked to bring forward the country from a closed economy to an open economy. When President J.R Jayawardena made this country an open economy, China also came to learn from us and countries like Singapore closely watched. But the former leftist movement created an unnecessary fear in the public mind about investments and entrepreneurs.
Tomorrow we will go to a digital world. We are going on the journey of becoming a developed country in 2048. When our labour leaders boasted, Singapore was grateful to our country, Lee Kuan Yew said that it was possible to build a port in Singapore because of the Sri Lankan labour movement. Now is the time to change this. We have to build human resources suitable for the future world of work, the world of digital work.
Ranil Wickremesinghe saw this futuristic vision in the year 2002. These people made various efforts to prevent him from coming to power. But today he has taken decisions that are necessary for the country and protect the people. He has advised creating a labour law that will create a viable background for investment, businesses to thrive and also protect the workers.
The United National Party has accepted challenges throughout its history. The party has worked for the good of the country by taking unpopular decisions. And this year, the labour law will be changed, and the name of Ranil Wickremesinghe and the United National Party will be etched in history.
We struggled in the past and faced challenges head-on. They said not to send money to the country. Tourists were told not to come to the country. At this time, President Ranil Wickrekamesinghe started the real struggle, the struggle to keep people alive. In 2048, the system change will be done to make this country an advanced and developed country. We invite you to join hands to do that system change.
We are all human beings first. That is why the United National Party always thinks about the people. That is why we do not work for narrow political goals.
On this International Labour Day, I offer my revolutionary salute to our workers who toiled amidst various obstacles and challenges to bring this country forward and our expatriate workers who sent foreign exchange for our people to buy medicine, fuel, gas and food. (NewsWire)
