Avoiding Necrocapitalism in Sri Lanka s Free Trade Zones – Groundviews groundviews.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from groundviews.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Long before COVID-19 hit Sri Lanka’s shores, grassroots women’s organisations fought poverty pay, long hours, and unsafe working conditions in the country s garment manufacturing districts.
These organisations have been advocating for the people producing high-end clothing for brands such as H&M, Next, JC Penny, Benetton, Marks & Spencer, Gap, Victoria’s Secret, Ralph Lauren and Triumph.
Garments account for approximately 45% of Sri Lanka s export income. Up to 85% of workers employed in this sector are women working in assembly line operations, who earn between LKR12,000 and 20,000 per month (A$80 to $130).
Their labour has been crucial in maintaining the Sri Lankan economy through war (1983-2009) and post-war periods, as well as the economic shocks generated through disasters such as the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, or violence such as the Beeshanaya ( Time of terror ) from 1987-91, and the Easter Sunday attacks (2019).
About 50 people participated in an online meeting, organised by Australia Asia Worker Links. They included unionists and solidarity activists from Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Nepal and Australia.
Union leader Dasantha Jayalath, who worked in the Ansell factory until he was sacked in 2013, said earlier that year the company increased its production targets which meant that workers had no time to relieve themselves. Workplace protests were organised and the company sacked the union president, then 10 more union leaders, including Jayalath.
Eventually, the company sacked about 300 workers for participating in strike action.
Janaka, another sacked Ansell worker, spoke about the long struggle for better pay and conditions at the factory. He said three of his comrades had lost their lives in this struggle, including a unionist who was shot dead by police during a strike in 1994.