Sri Lanka broadcaster Swarnavahini TV fired 15 employees for union activity on 18 March 2019. On that day, approximately 270 employees of Swarnavahini TV participated in a meeting in the company’s car park with the aim of forming a union to fight for better working conditions. The meeting was scheduled during the staff lunch hour.
At the end of the meeting, the gates to the company’s offices were locked and the employees were blocked from accessing the building. They reported the incident to the police, and when they were finally able to enter the offices, 15 staff members found letters informing them that they had been let go for “deliberately disrupting the business and operations” of the company and for using the company sound system at an unauthorised gathering.
The union was formed to fight for bettering working conditions. Staff reported that in the past 12 months, there had been no salary increases, pay was not on time and there was bias when it came to promotions.
Other media workers’ movements rallied in support and called for the respect of the workers’ right to organise and for the immediate reinstatement of those dismissed.
