Following the threatening letter sent to all employees at the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) by its Human Resource Department demanding their written disapproval of the joint trade union action of criticising the incumbent Governor on or before a deadline (today), the trade unions of the CBSL have sent a joint letter to the Department, concluding that all decisions taken by trade unions are on the basis of unanimous or majority agreements of the executive committee of the trade unions, and that as the responsibility for these decisions rests with the trade unions, sending letters targeting individuals personally against these decisions cannot be approved of.
Accordingly, a letter signed by the five major trade unions of the CBSL denoted that the incumbent Governor failing to respond to the letters submitted by the trade unions regarding their grievances mainly contributed to the turmoil within the Bank, and that this has also made a negative impact on the industrial peace within the institutional environment.
The right of a trade union to express its opinion has been violated by the HR Department’s drastic response in defence of the Top Management of the CBSL, and such undue influence would be an obstacle to a trade union’s role towards its membership, the letter pointed out.
It added that it would be appropriate if the Human Resource Department of the CBSL caters to equal treatment for all employees, in the manner in which it works to appease its Top Management.
On December 01, 2022, all trade unions of the CBSL made a historic move by issuing a letter backed by about 200 employees levelling criticism against Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe, for failing to respond to the grievances of the employees. This was notably the first time in the history of the CBSL for all trade unions to make a joint effort to criticise the conduct of a serving Governor.
The CBSL Human Resource Department made rather a hostile response to this trade union action, demanding a written disapproval of the letter from all CBSL workers on or before 15.12.2022 (today), warning that any employee failing to meet the deadline shall be held accountable for the trade unions’ remarks against the Governor.
Previous reports:
