Health employees to launch black band campaign

[TamilNet, Saturday, 27 December 2003, 14:42 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Health Services Trade Union Alliance (HSTUA) Saturday announced that it would launch a black armband and black flag hoisting campaign in protest against the government's failure to resolve health sector salary anomalies.

The black armband protest will begin from Monday and the black flag hoisting campaign at every health institution though out the country would be launched from December 31. One hundred thousand leaflets will be distributed to educate the public on its struggle, HSTUA said in a press release issued in Colombo.

" We have lined up a series of protests campaigns against the Health Ministry until its comes with a positive response to our long standing demands including removing salary anomalies in the current salary structure," HSUTA spokesman said

Thousands of health sector employees are scheduled to report to work from Monday wearing black arm bands. From Wednesday onwards they would report for work after hoisting black flag at the health institution they work in addition to wearing black armband, HSTUA sources said.

The HSTUA has been urging the government to give health sector workers the same treatment given to medical officers when they demanded a salary increase, sources said.

The government has said the health sector employees will be given salary increase in three stages in 2004, 2005 and 2006.