July 1980 strikers:

End of a long dark tunnel?

by Dhaneshi Yatawara

Will the long drawn out tragedy and struggle of the July 1980 workers' general strike soon reach some closure at last? A whole generation after tens of thousands of striking workers lost their jobs under tough Emergency laws enforced by the United National Party government of the time, the current Finance Minister, belonging to that same party, has offered a compensation package through his budget to those now ageing ex-strikers. Some trade union leaders, however, are arguing that the compensation is not enough.

In July 1980, after months of frustration over rising living costs and the failure of their union leaders to win adequate pay hikes, scores of thousands of members of the country's then massive trade union movement spontaneously struck work even before their leaders could actually decide on union action. Faced with a mass strike wave that threatened the stable growth path of a newly liberalised economy, the government of the time did not hesitate to take the most drastic steps to suppress the work stoppage.

After repeated warnings, the late President J. R. Jayewardene summarily used the tough Emergency powers and 'Essential Services' law to sack scores of thousands of state and private sector striking workers including the cream of the country's main trade union leaderships. According to union leaders, initially thousands lost their jobs for staying away from duties in violation of the 'Essential Services' enforcement. For years afterward, the strikers were compelled to organize to campaign, initially to resist sacking and then, to attempt to regain their lost employment and, finally, to win compensation if reinstatement was not possible.

Lump sum payment

Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake has specifically allocated money to compensate those who lost their jobs permanently due to the then government's counter-strike move. Galvanised by this belated remedial initiative, trade union leaders have not moved to engage with the Government to negotiate further on this matter. The Budget for 2016 proposes a single lump sum payment of Rs.250,000 each to the 1980 July strikers and the Rs. 500 million has been allocated for this purpose.

General Secretary of the July Strikers’ Association P. Amaradiwakara

General Secretary of Ceylon Teachers’ Union, Joseph Stalin

Currently, according to data available with trade union activists, over 3000 July 1980 strikers are being paid by the Government a cost-of-living allowance of Rs. 6000 monthly. But union leaders and former strikers are unhappy.

This lump sum payment will end the regular monthly allowance currently being paid to the July strikers, charged General Secretary of the Ceylon Teachers' Union, Joseph Stalin, a veteran union leader.

"It is not fair by these people who are very old now and in need of more support, not less," he argued, adding that the lump sum payment was another way of restricting the regular allowance payment to just three and half more years. "In the long term this does not seem to be supportive to our comrades. The Government must discuss with the relevant parties and re-think this proposal," he emphasised.

The 1980 July strike was carried out by the vast membership of the Joint Trade Union Action Committee (JTUAC), a broad alliance of trade unions across a range of sectors demanding wage increases. The final set of demands is reported to have included a wage increase of Rs. 300 per month, payment of Rs. 5 per unit increase in the official Cost-of-Living Index and, the withdrawal of punishment on those who had participated in a union protest held on June 5, 1980, recalled General Secretary of the July Strikers Association P. Amaradiwakara.

"There needs to be more clarity in the system of payment that is scheduled to be delivered to the strikers," Amaradiwakara said.

Following discussions with the previous government a decision was made to pay Rs. 5000 per month as a cost of living allowance to the strikers, he said. "The Government started paying from 2003 January. Then in 2004 it was increased to Rs. 6000," he added. He explained that over 3000 people are currently being paid.

The public sector employees were reinstated in their posts after compensating them and then they were absorbed into the pension scheme, according to Amaradiwakara. The Cost-of-Living allowance was initially paid to the workers of the private sector companies, employees of the Thulhiriya textiles company and the public corporation sector.

Wait and see

Nearly 90% of the July strikers are with the Association, Amaradiwakara claimed. He pointed out that in 1980 the then UNP regime had summarily sacked up to 100,000 workers over their demand for a small pay rise, "not even allowing a discussion".

"We requested both the previous and the current Government to increase the monthly allowance to Rs. 10,000. And now the Government is proposing to give a lump sum. As the decision is not yet finalised with the Budget, we will wait and see," he said. Amaradiwakara emphatically called on the government to hold discussions with the unions and the Association before reaching a final decision.

The Central Committee of the July Striker's Association will meet on December 13 to further discuss the proposal made in the budget, he added.