• The need for dialogue and fairness in reform 

As Sri Lanka navigates the journey of economic revitalisation, structural reforms, including restructuring, have emerged as a key area of the country’s recovery strategy. 

The proposed restructuring of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) continues to draw attention. It highlights the complexity of transforming a vital public utility while upholding principles of fairness, transparency, and social dialogue. 

The cost of ad hoc restructuring

The current design for the CEB reforms outlines its restructuring into four separate State-owned entities – for generation, transmission, distribution, and system management – and two other companies for the transitional process. This also includes reassigning the CEB’s 23,000 workforce and offering voluntary retirement. 

While acknowledging the need to improve efficiency and service delivery, and to reform in principle, one cannot ignore that the implementation of these changes has led to widespread unrest and frustration due to the lack of dialogue. 

Employees initially received assignment letters with no information on designation, roles, remuneration, or organisational structure. This ad hoc approach, with apparent gaps in human resource policies, future roles, transfer criteria, seniority rights, organisational culture, and preliminary transfer plans, has significantly hindered employees’ ability to make informed career decisions, leaving many in a state of limbo and eroding trust in the restructuring process. 

With close to 2,000 workers opting for voluntary retirement, addressing the resulting skills void, mitigating the impact on service delivery, and ensuring a smooth transition all require both a broad strategic perspective and a nuanced understanding – best achieved through multi-stakeholder dialogue.  

At the request of the Sri Lanka Nidahas Sevaka Sangamaya (SLNSS), the International Labour Organization (ILO) facilitated a forum that created a space for open dialogue and a platform to voice employees’ concerns. Leveraging the momentum from this dialogue, parallel engagements with the Commissioner General of Labour and other bilateral partners provided support for renewing efforts towards more inclusive dialogue.  

“The industrial actions were not acts of defiance but a means to be heard. At the heart of this issue lies the absence of social dialogue – a fundamental principle of good governance. 

“The ILO-facilitated forum provided a much-needed space for open conversation and for employees to voice their concerns. However, there are still certain issues that are cause for apprehension and are under discussion. True dialogue is not about confrontation; it is about being heard, understood, and working together to build consensus,” stated SLNSS General Secretary Leslie Devendra. 

The role of WPFs in social dialogue

Social dialogue is not a simple tick-the-box exercise; it is the cornerstone of equitable reform. When engaged in good faith, it allows grievances and concerns of all stakeholders to be heard, leading to mutual understanding, social peace, and the forging of a collective path forward. This requires leveraging existing spaces for dialogue and creating new spaces where needed.  

One mechanism that is seeing success in the public sector is Workplace Forums (WPFs) and sectoral forums. Presently being rolled out in several priority public sectors, under the United Nations Sri Lanka Social Dialogue for Peace and Crisis Prevention in Sri Lanka project implemented by the ILO, United Nations Population Fund, and United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), these forums are creating a platform for constructive exchange between management and workers and addressing concerns at the onset. 

“The power sector is currently going through a major reform. Social dialogue, grievance handling, and dispute resolution are essential to cater to employees’ requirements and expectations while achieving Government objectives. 

“Workplace forums can support in making better informed decisions drawing from workers’ experiences, and as a tool for discussion and conversation, which are crucial in managing change,” said CEB Engineer and CEB Engineers’ Union (CEBEU) Executive Committee member  Isuru Kasthurirathne. 

There already exists measurable proof of the efficacy of workplace forums in the energy sector. Lanka Electricity Company Ltd. (LECO), a wholly Government-owned electricity distribution company, piloted the establishment of WPFs across its six regional divisions and at the Head Office level. Rather than adopting a rigid external template, the company adapted the framework outlined in Public Administration Circular No.5/2024 to suit its unique organisational culture.  

The forums provide space to address workplace disputes and to discuss and implement new proposals at the local level. Only issues that cannot be dealt with locally are escalated to the Head Office for further action. Through situating WPFs as a consultative platform, LECO has demonstrated that it is possible to make better-informed decisions by drawing directly on workers’ practical experience.  

WPFs create a participatory platform for shifting away from traditional ’command and control’ management styles towards a culture of partnership, dialogue, and shared responsibility. An analysis of nearly 22 functioning WPFs across priority sectors indicates that approximately half of all workplace-related issues can be successfully resolved at the organisational level without the need for further escalation. 

Effective social dialogue crucial

Effective engagement in social dialogue and the establishment of multi-level dialogue forums is a promising model for other State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) to follow in the upcoming reforms, ensuring principles of fairness, transparency, and collectively arriving at solutions towards equitable reforms.

Sri Lanka must move forward on a new path, and change, though difficult, is inevitable. But the process of progress cannot undermine workers’ Fundamental Rights or sideline the legitimate concerns of the very people required to carry forward these reforms. 

Successful restructuring efforts are built on transparency, fairness, and consultation; the absence of these impedes sustainability and long-term success. As the country continues reforms, there is recognition that its success or failure has consequences for every single Sri Lankan, underscoring the need for all voices to be heard and for fair and just processes.

(Athukorala is a former Senior Assistant Secretary – Foreign Relations at the Ministry of  Labour and co-author of the ILO publication ‘Building a High-Quality Public Service in Sri Lanka Through Workplace Reforms.’ Sumanadasa, who holds a PhD, is a retired SLAS officer, Attorney-at-Law, and former Secretary to the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs)

(The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the official position of this publication)