A landmark labour ruling has compelled an international media organisation to pay millions in dues and compensation, exposing serious violations of Sri Lanka’s employment laws and setting a powerful precedent for media workers.
A decision has been taken to pay nearly Rs. 7 million in Employees’ Provident Fund payments and surcharges to Sri Lankan journalist Azzam Ameen following clear violations of national labour laws by a foreign media organisation.
According to an order issued by the Colombo Labour Office, the employer has paid Rs. 6,913,233 due to its failure to properly remit the required EPF contributions during the period Azzam Ameen was employed with the institution. The ruling confirms that statutory obligations toward employee benefits were not met in accordance with Sri Lankan labour regulations.
This payment was made pursuant to an earlier Labour Tribunal determination that Azzam Ameen’s dismissal was unfair. The tribunal had ruled that his contract was terminated prematurely without justifiable grounds.
In the same judgment, the tribunal had also ordered the employer to pay Rs. 4.5 million in compensation for wrongful termination. As a result, the total amount now paid to Azzam Ameen amounts to nearly Rs. 12 million.
In its ruling delivered on 26 April 2024, the Labour Tribunal found that the decision to terminate Azzam Ameen’s employment was irrational and unjustifiable. It further observed that the conduct of a senior representative of the organisation, Iain Haddow, was arbitrary and inconsistent with fair labour practices.
Meanwhile, in a related development involving another international media organisation, the Court of Appeal last month dismissed a writ petition filed by Reuters. The case concerned a request to stay an order directing payment of Rs. 6.2 million to journalist Ranga Sreelal for unpaid EPF, gratuity and surcharges.
Court of Appeal Judge Aditya Patabendi ruled that the petition amounted to an abuse of the judicial process. Reuters was subsequently ordered to pay Rs. 100,000 as legal fees to Ranga Srilal.
Sounds good,