Taking TUs into confidence

There was much heartburn among State sector employees when the last Budget had nothing for them by way of a pay hike. At the last Presidential Election both main candidates promised salary hikes to Government employees. While General Sarath Fonseka offered a fantastic Rs. 10,000 wage increase President Mahinda Rajapaksa was more circumspect promising a more modest Rs. 2500.

The public of course reposed their trust in the President's pledge and although this was not the sole reason for electing him for a second term the working class no doubt harboured a genuine feeling that they would receive an enhanced pay packet from the last Budget. However what many failed to realize was that what was presented in June was a mere statement of accounts due to the intervention of the Presidential Election during the Budget period and that the Budget proper would only be in the coming November. The President for his part has shown all signs and indications that he is going to honour his election pledge by raising the wages in the public sector in the coming budget. The Government on Wednesday appointed a Special Committee to go into State sector salary anomalies and come up with their report before the end of August. This was after the President met a Trade Union delegation at Temple Trees.

Significantly the Committee tasked with going into all disparities in the State sector salary structures and coming up with solutions comprise Trade Union representatives. The recommendations of the Committee will be considered when drafting the 2011 Budget.

It is appropriate that Trade Unions are given a hand in identifying the salary anomalies among their own brethren. In the past it is ad-hoc decisions by various committees who had no feel for the plight of the worker, which, instead of leading to a reasonable solution vis-a-vis public sector salaries compounded the problem further. More often than not the workers rejected these piece meal solutions and even called into question the credentials of these Committees.

Now that the Trade Unions themselves will decide on the ideal wage structure it is hoped that the long-standing disputes with regard to public sector emoluments will come to a permanent end. The Trade Union representation in the Committee for their part should be reasonable in making their proposals. They should give thought to the fact that the country is only just emerging from the ashes of war and be circumspect in their recommendations.

The Committee it is hoped will be a permanent fixture through which the Government will address the grievances of the workers and also act as media for settling industrial disputes thus minimizing worker unrest.

It is also hoped that the latest mechanism to solving pay disputes in the State sector will lead to industrial peace that would increase productivity in our notoriously lacklustre State Departments and corporations resulting in the expansion of growth. We say this because irresponsible Trade Union action over the years have taken a heavy toll on the economy even during the height of the war when the Government was hard pressed to grant salary hikes.

It is worthy however to recall that even in the midst of those difficulties President Mahinda Rajapaksa raised the minimum wage of the workers to Rs. 12,000 no doubt due to his empathy with the working class, being a firebrand Trade Union activist himself during his rise as a politician.

Being a one time trade unionist he is also no doubt well aware of the sinister forces who may want to use the trade union platform to further their personal or political agendas. That is why he cautioned trade unions representatives who met him on Wednesday not to fall prey to pressures exerted by certain forces who may want to blacken the image of the country.

While the trade unions have now been given the opportunity to be active partners in sorting out salary anomalies they also owe it to themselves to give value for money so to speak. They should not be content with extracting their pound of flesh but by being more productive and give off their mite to ensure profitable returns for their respective institutions. They should now act more responsibly and with a conscience. Trade Union leaders should enjoin their members on the virtues of a proper work ethic and make them put their collective shoulders to the wheel to take the country to renew the era of development and prosperity in this post war phase.