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Employment rate unaffected by new wave

13 May 2021

  • Dept. of labour takes measures to increase employment
By Imsha Iqbal   Regardless of a year-on-year increase in unemployment recorded in the year 2020 driven by the local first and second waves of the virus, the Ministry of Labour noted that the prevailing third wave has not led to any further increases in the unemployment rate of the country. Speaking to The Morning Business, Minister of Labour Nimal Siripala de Silva said that he is unable to predict the fluctuations of the rate of unemployment in Sri Lanka during this period, but said that there was no increase in unemployment during the first quarter of the year 2021. The unemployment rate increased from 4.8% (2019) to 5.5% in the year 2020, according to the annual financial report of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL).    According to the survey report of the Commissioner General of Labour, the Minister stated, approximately 15,000 people have lost their jobs due to the pandemic during the last (second) wave.  Talking to The Sunday Morning Business last Sunday (9), Labour Department Commissioner General Prabath Chandrakeerthi confirmed that among the 15,000 unemployed individuals, 13,428 were from the apparel sector and 1,732 individuals were from non-apparel sector.  In order to mitigate this situation, the Government gave media publicity to numerous job opportunities which were available then, the Minister said. The apparel sector workers were the majority who were left unemployed due to the pandemic and compensation was paid for those who lost jobs under the Termination of Employment Act, Minister Silva said.  Also, if such an individual has not been provided with compensation, s/he can inform the Labour Commission in this regard. The Commission is bound to provide the compensation if the said individual is eligible to receive the compensation package under the said Act, the Minister further said.  Moreover, the unemployed individuals can seek employment in a different occupation, according to their convenience, with the intervention of the Department of Labour.  According to the CBSL Annual Report for 2020, it indicates that the labour force has contracted to 8.467 million people whilst the previous year it was 8.592 million. Thus, the labour force participation rate has reduced to 50.6% in the last year. Also, with the airport restrictions and other travel restrictions, the difference, between 2019 and 2020, in departures for foreign employment is 149,374 persons.  


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