Fuel crisis, other vital sectors face strike

Commotion outside a Colombo filling station

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* “This payment was due from January, but we decided not to carry out any our trade union action due to the war situation in the country. Now that the war is over, we cannot accept excuses any more,” a CPC trade union leader said.
* Fuel shortages arose due to a “go slow” campaign by a JVP-backed joint front of trade unions in the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) in support of a wage increase.
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Fuel crisis, other vital sectors face strike
By Chris Kamalendran and Damith Wickremasekera, Pic by Lakshman Gunathilake
Disruption of the fuel distribution network compelled filling stations countrywide to shut down yesterday as fears grew of strikes in other vital sectors such as electricity, water supply and the ports.
Workers in these sectors complain that the absence of budget proposals next month showed that the government will not fulfil assurances given to them over wage hikes. Instead the government will table a vote on account on November 3.
Fuel shortages arose due to a “go slow” campaign by a JVP-backed joint front of trade unions in the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) in support of a wage increase. Trade unions in other sectors will join immediately if talks to win CPC demands fail, JVP’s trade union wing leader K.D. Lalkantha said yesterday.
The CPC unions, which are demanding a much-overdue interim allowance of Rs 5,000, are due to hold talks tomorrow with President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Many of the fuel stations in the country were either forced to close down or limit the sale of fuel in the aftermath of a short supply since Thursday. Motorists in vehicles were forced to stay in long queues or curtail their movements.
The bus services were among the worst affected with many buses remaining off the road. The situation is likely to remain the same today. 'At least 40 percent of buses were forced to pull out by yesterday and this is likely to increase to 60 percent,” All Island Private Bus owners Association leader Gemunu Wijeratne said yesterday.
He said that even if the fuel distribution was restored to some sort of normalcy by tomorrow, the bus services were likely to be disrupted tomorrow also. Lanka Indian Oil Corporation (LIOC) workers, showing solidarity with CPC unions, refrained from working, though they usually work over time.
Petroleum Minister A.H.M. Fowzie has promised CPC Unions that he would arrange a meeting with President Rajapaksa tomorrow after he returned from Vietnam. There main demand of the unions is a salary revision which was due early this year after a period of three years or an interim allowance of Rs. 5,000 a month.

“If these talks fail we will be organizing a joint trade union action including strikes,” Mr. Lalkantha saidThe 6,700 CPC work force was promised the interim allowance of Rs. 5,000 earlier this year and the payment was due be given on September 30, but was deferred on the grounds that the Treasury did not have sufficient funds.“This payment was due from January, but we decided not to carry out any our trade union action due to the war situation in the country. Now that the war is over, we cannot accept excuses any more,” a CPC trade union leader said.
He said that though the government had claimed it did not have money to pay the salary increases, state bank employees had been given a salary hike.
CEB Lanka Viduli Sevaka Sangamaya leader Ranjan Lal said they would be meeting soon to decide on a three-day strike because of the failure to grant the salary increase. Trade union leaders at the National Water Supply and Drainage Board and the Ports Authority also said they were demanding salary increases which were long over due to them.
Ports Authority joint trade union leader Chandrasiri Mahagamage said yesterday the management had told them it was not able to increase salaries due to a drop in revenue. But unions were not accepting that explanation and would take joint trade union action soon.
Water Board union leader Upali Ratnayaka said yesterday they would be holding a protest campaign on Tuesday in Matara as a prelude to further trade union action in support of demands for salary hikes.

Source: The Sunday Times (25-October-2009)