The Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PA) held its 170th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on September 14, 2024, at The Galadari Hotel in Colombo. The event, graced by the presence of Chief Guest, Mohan Pandithage, Chairman and Chief Executive of the Hayleys Group, marked a pivotal moment for the nation’s plantation industry.

The AGM witnessed the formal handover of leadership from outgoing Chairman, Senaka Alawattegama, to Sunil Poholiyadde, who assumes the role for his second term. The transition comes at a critical juncture for the industry, facing significant challenges and opportunities.

In his final address, Alawattegama reflected on the substantial progress made during his tenure, notably the successful resolution of long-standing wage negotiations. He highlighted the introduction of a new wage structure that includes a daily minimum wage of Rs. 1,350 and a productivity-linked component of Rs. 50 per kilogram. This achievement, he noted, represents a significant victory for both workers and Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs), accomplished despite considerable challenges and pressures.

“As we move forward, decisions related to wages and policies must be made with the best interests of the entire industry—including workers—at heart,” Alawattegama stated. “We must ensure that our industry remains affordable and sustainable so that it can thrive for generations to come.”

Taking over the helm, Poholiyadde delivered an incisive speech outlining his vision for the future. He commended the industry’s collective resilience in successfully navigating the recent wage crisis, which had been considered a potential existential threat to the industry.

“On May 1st, 2024, a proposed wage increase to Rs. 1,700—a 70% hike—threatened to cripple our industry,” Poholiyadde remarked. “Recognizing the gravity of the situation, the PA took unprecedented steps, including legal action up to the Supreme Court. Our persistent efforts resulted in a more sustainable wage agreement, a testament to what we can achieve when we unite.”

Emphasizing the crucial role of innovation and technology in overcoming current challenges, Poholiyadde asserted, “We must embrace innovation to sustain our industry. Mechanization can provide relief, especially with our diminishing labor force.” He highlighted that since 1992, the industry has lost 50% of its workforce, adversely affecting production volumes. “We may not reach even 250 million kilograms of tea this year, although the industry had initially targeted over 300 million.”

Poholiyadde also underscored the necessity of adopting new technologies, mechanization, and automation in both field and factory operations to enhance productivity and remain competitive globally. “The technology exists globally; it’s a matter of us embracing and implementing it,” he said. (PA)

By Harischandra Gunaratna

The chairman of the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management (SLITHM), Shirantha Peiris, in an interview with The Island Financial Review recently said that his dream was to take the school back to its ‘golden days’ when it functioned as Ceylon Hotel School.

‘The Ceylon Hotel School produced world class hoteliers, where some of them held top positions in hotels owned and operated by international chains in different parts of the world, he said.

Peiris assumed duties as the chairman of SLITHM in June 2022 and the institute has seen steady advancement during this short period, according to SLITHM sources.

When queried as to how the standards and the quality of such a prestigious institution had deteriorated, Pieris admitted that there was a drop in the quality of some of the students. He attributed the deterioration of standards to multiple reasons, which he has identified and rectified.

Some of the improvements effected by him relate to the student enrollment process. For example, students are now enrolled purely on merit, with external influence not being taken into consideration. The same practice is followed with regard to employee recruitment.

Pieris added: ‘When I left school in 1982, it was extremely difficult to join Ceylon Hotel School as there was a very clear and a transparent selection process. At present we adopt the same practice.

‘When I assumed duties, one of my first tasks was to look into the existing value chain of the organization and introduce efficiency.

‘The institution follows a strict enrolment process with multiple eliminating stages to ensure that the right candidate is selected.

‘We must ensure that only the right students who have a passion for hospitality are enrolled as this has a positive impact not only in meeting customer expectations, but often exceeding same when our students are in the industry. We have seen this many a time in the industry, where our students have maintained high standards in a consistent manner.

‘Deteriorating standards of English of some of the staff members and students in the school is an issue. It has to be addressed and recommendations are made to the senior management. English is mandatory when engaging in hospitality as well as when being employed.

‘The standards of students who pass out of the institution are high and they could secure employment in any top-class hotel in Sri Lanka with handsome remuneration packages. We need to ensure that every student meets these criteria and this cannot be done overnight. If you look around the leading hotels, most of the General Managers and senior management are former students of SLITHM (Ceylon Hotel School). We need to maintain these standards, be consistent and adopt the best practices at SLITHM. Our main objective is to train people for the local industry.

‘SLITHM had the very first Innovation Fair last week which was an excellent initiative by the Director General – SLITHM, where we were able to witness our students’ innovation and creativity, not restricting to the usual practices but also introducing AI driven technology. During the last two years we have introduced multiple events for students, including sports activities, which will be an annual event from now on.

‘We have nine schools, covering all provinces and at present seven schools run at full capacity and one of the constraints is that we need more space to run the institution. We have already communicated to the authorities requesting additional space to increase the number of students. We are working towards increasing the number of students at the Jaffna and Batticaloa schools as well.

‘It is imperative that we introduce and engage in global best practices and be current with the rapid changes that take place in hospitality and tourism. Restructuring and succession planning have commenced and are on-going.

‘We are also focused on the wellbeing of our employees and have introduced a “Pink Day”, which takes place in October as it is ‘Breast Cancer Awareness Month’. On this day we have health care experts creating awareness and all our female employees are invited to go through a screening process at no cost. We will be introducing employee engagement initiatives too to ensure that we have a work force that is engaged in being high performers.

‘SLITHM also has the “Samudra Training Hotel” (STH) located in the Colombo School. STH is currently going through a transformation process and will be a fully operational hotel before this winter. The Samudra Restaurant has been fully renovated and is already in operation. The other areas that will be operational soon are the pub, the terrace with a beautiful ocean view and all rooms refurbished with the support of the industry. We have already written to the industry and have received positive responses. The uniqueness of this operation will be that the hotel will be run by students. STH will be a place to talk about very soon.

‘Another area we are working towards is going paperless and introducing automation where applicable. In this day and age, we cannot be comfortable with old practices and need to embrace technology.

‘I must thank my staff for their contribution and continuous support in the transformation process as well as all stakeholders working closely with SLITHM.’

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