Govt. to amend Industrial Dispute Act

• Special Provision to be adapted to allow Labour Tribunals to hear EPF non-payment complaints 
• Attempt to reduce backlog of over 15,000 outstanding cases worth Rs. 12 b pending before Magistrate Courts
• Amendment to only apply to new cases, new provision already sent to legal draftsman

By Uditha Jayasinghe   

The Government is working to revamp the Industrial Dispute Act to allow future Employees Provident Fund (EPF) non-payment cases to be heard by Labour Tribunals, which authorities hope will reduce the burden of over 15,000 outstanding cases worth an estimated Rs. 12 billion.   

Under the current legal provisions any non-payment of EPF dues by an employer needs to be taken up before a Magistrate Court. However, due to the massive backlog of cases around the country the Labour Ministry is looking to change the Act by introducing a Special Provision. 

“This issue has been raised by multiple stakeholders and we have already sent the relevant documents to the legal draftsman. The focus is on expanding the powers of Labour Tribunals so they can take up EPF non-payment cases and provide faster relief to workers,” Labour Commissioner General Prabath Chandrakeerthi told Daily FT. 

In areas where there are no Labour Tribunals, the EPF non-payment cases can continue to be lodged before the nearest Magistrate Court, Chandrakeerthi said, adding that the Special Provision will only govern new complaints. He added that employers sidestepping EPF payments was a serious problem cross all sectors and typically resulted in long drawn out disputes that created difficulties for workers. 

However, there are no measures at the moment to expand the number of Labour Tribunals. He also pointed out that Labour Tribunals fell under the control of the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) and the Labour Ministry did not have the power to make any changes to them. 

Meanwhile, the Labour Commissioner General has also appealed for employees to refrain from visiting the main office in Narahenpita to handover their EPF documents in person citing COVID-19 virus. He assured that steps have been taken for EPF applications to be accepted at all regional branches and employees should seek their assistance. 

Only employees of companies that have closed down in Colombo are required to present their EPF applications at the Narahenpita office. These provisions will be in place until further notice, the Commissioner General noted.