Health professionals gear to launch countrywide strike over longstanding salary anomalies

By Rathindra Kuruwita

Health professionals would launch a countrywide strike on 25 January unless the government rectified their long standing salary anomalies, College of Medical Laboratory Science (CMLS) President, Ravi Kumudesh told The Island on Tuesday (11).

Kumudesh said the salaries of health professionals who held a four-year higher diploma were lower than those of some categories of health workers who had passed only the GCE A/L. “The National Salaries Commission agreed to rectify the salary anomalies faced by principals and teachers. Our problem is similar, and that too must be resolved likewise.”

Kumudesh said that the Salaries Commission should inform the government of the problems faced by public servants, and take steps to solve the issues faced by health professionals, Kumudesh said.

“We will launch a strike tomorrow in the North Central Province. We will launch a strike in the Western Province on 19 January. If our issues are not addressed, a countrywide strike will be launched on 25 Jan. We urge the government to resolve this issue immediately,” he said.

Kumudesh said the President of the Public Service United Nurses Union, Ven. Muruththettuwe Ananda Thera had intervened to solve the issues faced by teachers. “Nurses and other health professionals face a similar issue. We urge the Thera to intervene and solve the issues faced by health sector professionals as well,” he said.