Labour Dept. to crack whip on EPF defaulters

by Ananda Kannangara

Private sector employers who violate labour laws, by not remitting Employees Provident Fund (EPF) deductions to the Central Bank will be prosecuted.

It has been found that more than 45 per cent of private sector institutions have not positively followed this Labour rule and instead are utilising the EPF moneys on various other ventures.

Labour Minister Athauda Seneviratne said that amendments to the EPF Act was presented to the Parliament from time to time from 1958 with an objective of helping with the increase in worker population.

"It is pathetic that many employers are still in the habit of violating the rules by not sending in their remittances to the Central Bank," he pointed out.

This situation badly affects nearly 35 lakhs employees in the mercantile sector who will be deprived of numerous benefits enjoyed by EPF holders. The Minister also said several private sector institutions, located outside the city of Colombo with a staff of eight and over have not remitted their EPF deductions to the Central Bank where the Minister will be forced to take immediate steps to crack down on them.

"However we have deployed nearly 600 officials to crack down on errant employers and 200 more officials will be added very soon," he said.

Therefore, the Minister requested the private sector employers to keep in mind the importance of this issue and make immediate arrangements to remit their EPF deductions to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka within the stipulated period.

Meanwhile, a senior Labour Department official emphasised that employers are legally bound to deduct 8 per cent from the salaries of each employee as EPF, adding a further 12 per cent and then remit it to the Central Bank.

He also said that all employees are bound by law to register their employees with the EPF department at the Central Bank within 14 days after they joined the company. The official forms in this regard could be obtained from the nearest Area Labour office.

"Employers who do not comply with this directive are liable to a fine and six months imprisonment, under the EPF Act," he warned.