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| Sunday, 12 October 2003 |
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CPA mediates in Jaqalanka crisis by Pelham Juriansz The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) will act as the intermediary in the crisis that has hit the Jaqalanka Group of Companies. The Group, one of the oldest garment manufacturing companies at the Katunayake Free Trade Zone, ran into controversy recently. It was rather unceremoniously attacked by the International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers Federation (ITGWF), a global textiles union, at the recent World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial Meeting in Cancun, Mexico. Jaqalanka was accused of "embarking on a campaign of harassment and intimidation against its workforce, when the management discovered the majority had joined the Free Trade Zone Workers Union (FTZWU). Union leaders were singled out for special attack," said the ITGWF. "When the matter was put to vote, out of a workforce of 399, only 17 had voted. Sixteen had voted in favour of the matter while one vote had been spoilt." The ITGWF had implied that workers had been dismissed and displaced and appealed to the Government to seek their reinstatement. However, according to the company's Management, the problem is much deeper than this. The trade union has wrongly accused the company of "working for profit and ignoring or evading labour laws and being mean and vindictive," they said. "Jaqalanka was established in 1978 and has a good reputation. Therefore, we do not want to tarnish that image," Daniel Ortiz, Joint Managing Director told a news conference held to clarify matters. "There is a misconception that all or most of our directors are from the UK, but this is not so. Three of the five directors are Sri Lankans. It is unfair that we have been accused of not looking after our workers, when we have taken special care to train them and also arrange annual trips for them. We have created a safe and healthy environment for our workers and respect their rights." The problem occurred when the FTZWU, supported by an NGO, Transnational Information Exchange, tried to gain acceptance at Jaqalanka Ltd for several months. Harin Fernando, Joint Managing Director Jaqalanka said, to gain mandatory bargaining status, any trade union requires 40 per cent of its working force to vote. The company has 1700 workers, so 40 per cent is 400. "Since the number of votes cast was insignificant, this has been criticised by the FTZWU. Jaqalanka has asked for a second referendum to be conducted by the stakeholders." To bolster its claims, the FTZWU has made several complaints to the Police that its members have received death threats. Police investigations have found that there is no truth in these allegations, states the management. Meanwhile, the three-member committee appointed by the Department of Labour to investigate the accusations against Jaqalanka found no evidence of misconduct by the company. Another option, allowing Auret Van Heerden of the Fair Labour Association (FLA) to investigate, is being considered. Van Heerden has requested the CPA to facilitate the process. Jaqalanka has agreed to cooperate with the CPA. "During the period under question, we did not have any major financial losses," Ortiz said. Contrary to this statement, the problem seemed to have sparked off when the Management decided not to give a bonus to the staff for the ensuing year in April 2003. Workers had been receiving a festival bonus each year during April. The reasons given by the company for not paying a bonus was that it was running at a loss. On why these allegations had been made, Ortiz first did not wish to comment, but said several undercurrents are going on and that a deeper problem exists here. "This seems to be just the tip of the iceberg. One has to get to the root of the problem. Big players are involved here. We are concerned that the country's reputation is at stake, because these concerns were voiced at a WTO meeting," said Ortiz. Jaqalanka reiterated its close partnership with employees and stated that it is committed to produce consistent quality apparel and provide related services with timely delivery. The dispute and especially its ramifications for the country and the Free Trade Agreements that will be signed are very significant as Sri Lanka is getting undue publicity from this. Speaking to the 'Sunday Observer' on the recent developments in this contentious issue, Neil De Mel, Director Finance of the company said that they had received many damaging emails from locals and foreigners and the Fair Labour Organisation (FLO) had appointed the CPA to act as an intermediary to conduct an impartial inquiry into the matter. The inquiry will be held on October 14 at a round table meeting where the representatives from the Management, the trade union and Dr Pakiasothy Saravanamuttu, Director CPA will be presented. "The CPA initially refused to get involved as it deals only with constitutional matters, but subsequently, it decided to help out," said De Mel. "The FLO needs to be educated on the matter; it is comparing us to the Dominican Republic," said De Mel. Jaqalanka produces jackets for brand labels like Red Kap, owned by the US-based company Workwear, which distributes safety equipment and clothing throughout the US. The parent company VF Corporation owns well-known jeans brands such as Lee, Wrangler, Rustler, Riders and Britannica. |
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