January 10, Colombo (LNW): The Federation of University Teachers’ Associations (FUTA) has affirmed its commitment to continue advocating against what it perceives as an inequitable tax policy.
This resolution was made during the association’s recent Executive Committee meeting.
For the past year, FUTA, in collaboration with the Government Medical Officers’ Association and 40 other professional organisations under the Professionals Trade Union Collective, has been spearheading a campaign to press for a reduction in personal income tax.
The campaign contends that the existing tax structure places an unjust burden on professionals.
The argument centres on the substantial increase in personal income tax, soaring from 6 per cent to 36 per cent for incomes exceeding Rs. 100,000. This drastic rise is contributing to a concerning trend of professional emigration, posing a threat to Sri Lanka’s skilled workforce, advocates asserted.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe, during a cabinet meeting, approved a 25 per cent increase in allowances for university professors, effective January. Notably, university lecturers actively participated in recent tax protests alongside medical professionals.
The government has implemented measures to grant special privileges to key groups within the Professionals Trade Union Collective. The Government Medical Officers’ Association and the Federation of University Teachers’ Associations welcomed the allowance increase as a positive step toward addressing their concerns.
While these developments indicate some responsiveness to professional concerns, FUTA’s decision to persist in its campaign underscores ongoing apprehensions about the broader tax policy and its implications for professionals in Sri Lanka.
