• The ripple effects of postal, railways, and doctors’ strikes 

The second half of 2025 has turned into one of the most turbulent periods for Sri Lanka’s public services in recent memory. From undelivered letters to abandoned train stations, strikes and protests have disrupted daily life across the island. 

The economic toll of these disputes is mounting, measured in lost revenue and also in fractured trust, productivity slowdowns, and the long-term erosion of public confidence in State-run services.

Sri Lanka’s fragile economy, which is still slowly getting through debt restructuring and austerity-driven reforms, can ill afford prolonged disruptions in essential services. Yet, in recent months, strikes in the postal and railways sectors have revealed both the deep grievances of workers and the cost borne by citizens and the economy at large.

Postal strike: A service brought to a halt

In mid-August, Sri Lanka’s postal workers launched an indefinite strike that quickly escalated into a nationwide disruption. Despite the Government conceding to 17 out of 19 demands raised by postal unions, workers refused to return to duty, holding firm on overtime (OT) payments and a directive requiring the use of fingerprint machines for attendance.

Sri Lanka Postal Services Association President Jagath Mahinda explained that the strike did not have the backing of all unions. 

“Out of the 19 demands, the majority have already been cleared by the Cabinet and steps are being taken to implement them. Matters like vehicle procurement have been resolved and groundwork has begun for several new post offices this year. What remains unresolved are mainly the issues of overtime payments and the proposed fingerprint attendance system, which is why the dispute continues. Our union, however, is not in favour of prolonging the strike,” he said.

Yet, he acknowledged that the ongoing strike had crystallised around OT payments and resistance to new attendance regulations. Mahinda stressed that reforms were underway and funding had been allocated for improvements.

Postmaster General Ruwan Sathkumara offered a blunt warning about the potential damage, saying: “The immediate financial hit is one concern, but the bigger problem is the possibility of customers turning away from us. If people start using private courier services because of these disruptions, it will be very difficult to win them back, and that kind of long-term damage could be far more costly than the strike itself.”

On paper, the Department of Posts stands to lose between Rs. 25 million and Rs. 30 million for each day of a full strike. But Sathkumara stated that the deeper danger lay in reputational loss, as well as the migration of customers to private couriers and digital alternatives, something that could permanently undercut the viability of the State-run service. Already, out of some 600 post offices nationwide, fewer than 160 remained open during the strike, with leave cancelled for all staff.

The strike began at Colombo’s Central Mail Exchange and spread rapidly across the island, involving 28 unions including the Joint Postal Trade Unions’ Front. 

As of late August, the Government had threatened to withhold salaries of those refusing to report to work without valid leave, but with the deadlock unresolved, both citizens and businesses faced crippling delays in a service that still underpins everything from utility bill delivery to rural remittances.

Railway strikes’ impact beyond lost tickets

Railway strikes are not new to Sri Lanka. They have long been among the most disruptive industrial actions due to the reliance of workers, students, and low-income commuters on train services. But this year, with multiple rounds of work stoppages, the economic impact has been harder to ignore.

Speaking on the matter, senior railway union representative, Railway Trade Unions Alliance Co-Convenor S.P. Vithanage explained: “We don’t have precise figures because the impact is not limited to ticket sales alone. On a strike day, revenue is lost, but the real cost goes beyond that, and it will take a detailed calculation with our finance team to capture the full picture.”

While official tallies are absent, the knock-on effects are undeniable. “When trains stop running, people’s daily routines come to a standstill. Those who travel long distances to Colombo struggle the most because there are few practical alternatives. The impact is not just on ticket income but on production and industry as well, which means the economy as a whole feels the strain,” he pointed out. 

According to the Sri Lanka Railways Administration Report 2023, passenger ticket sales generated just over Rs. 13.2 billion for the year, marking a 56% increase from 2022. On average, that translates to around Rs. 36 million in revenue each day, underscoring how costly even a single day of strike action can be. While past reports often cited strike losses in the range of Rs. 15–20 million per day, the official data indicates the real figure is far higher

People depend heavily on trains, including factory workers, public servants, and students. When services grind to a halt, productivity plummets as workers struggle to find alternatives, often at higher personal expense.

Manufacturing hubs outside Colombo, particularly in Gampaha and Kalutara, have reported absenteeism and reduced shifts during strikes. Export-oriented industries such as apparel, which operate on tight delivery schedules, face delays that ripple through supply chains. 

Beyond measurable losses, commuters are left stranded, sometimes forced to spend much more on private buses or ride-hailing services, eating into already squeezed household budgets.

Doctors’ trade union action a sensitive act

Perhaps the most complex and sensitive of strikes in Sri Lanka is in the health sector. Doctors, represented primarily by the Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA), are acutely aware of the life-and-death implications of withholding services.

GMOA Spokesperson Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe explained that strikes were always a last resort. 

“Calculating the cost of a strike is something the Government should do, but in our case the more important point is that we approach industrial action with extreme caution. The health sector is not like any other; it is directly tied to human lives. That is why we avoid strikes unless every other avenue has been exhausted, and even then, we act with the utmost care.”

He stressed that unlike in other sectors, strike declarations and actions were not immediate. “Announcing trade union action and actually going into it are two very different steps. Unlike some other sectors, we don’t make a declaration in the morning and set down tools immediately after. We allow space for the authorities to respond and resolve matters before we take that final step.”

Crucially, life-saving treatments are never suspended. “When we resort to trade union action, we make it clear that essential services will never be compromised. Life-saving treatments, emergency care, and critical procedures always continue. The aim is to minimise disruption to patients, because this is not something we treat lightly.”

Even so, the economic impact is significant. Outpatient services are curtailed, elective surgeries delayed, and patients forced to seek care at private hospitals, often at high personal cost. A single day of widespread medical trade union action can shift thousands of patients into the private sector, straining household incomes and deepening inequality in access to healthcare.

Dr. Wijesinghe pointed to the responsibility of the political leadership: “It is the responsibility of the authorities and the political hierarchy to not push us towards engaging in strikes.”

An economy under pressure

Quantifying the total cost of strikes in Sri Lanka is challenging. Direct losses are easier to estimate; postal services report Rs. 25–30 million in daily losses, railways forgo Rs. 36 million or more in revenue per day in terms of ticket sales, and private household costs spike when medical services are curtailed. But the indirect costs run deeper.

Each day of a railway strike delays exports, disrupts production, and reduces national output. Each day of a postal strike accelerates the shift of customers to digital or private services, eroding the State’s relevance. Each day of uncertainty in health services undermines confidence in the public system and fuels out-of-pocket spending.

Economists warn that such disruptions, recurring across sectors, sap both Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and public morale. Sri Lanka’s economy is projected to grow by just around 4% this year as per Asian Development Bank (ADB) estimates, a modest recovery from contraction, but repeated strikes are an obstacle to that fragile trajectory. 

Strikes also complicate investor confidence. At a time when the Government is negotiating foreign direct investment and promoting Sri Lanka as a logistics and services hub, images of picket lines and crippled trains do little to reassure.

The social cost is equally stark. Postal workers striking over overtime payments may appear narrow in scope, but for rural pensioners waiting on cheques, the impact is personal. Train stoppages may be framed as disputes over promotions and wages, but for students in distant towns missing exams in Colombo, the fallout is immediate. Doctors may preserve emergency care, but when chronic patients face weeks of delays for treatment, lives are disrupted.

Economists suggest that the long-term solution lies in proper dialogue, transparent data, and modernised industrial relations. Without these, Sri Lanka could see normalising strikes as the default negotiating tool, which is an outcome the economy cannot withstand.