As trade union action crippling state-run hospitals entered its sixth day, Sri Lanka’s president outlawed strikes in the health and electricity sectors.
According to the president’s office, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa cited a 1979 statute preventing stoppages in the two sectors, designating all connected activity “vital public services.”
Courts can now sentence someone to five years in prison and seize their possessions if they refuse to work.
The move came after healthcare unions disobeyed a court order on Thursday to halt their strike pending the outcome of a petition challenging their actions.
Sri Lanka’s economy has been plagued by a foreign exchange crisis, and labor organizations are demanding greater promotion possibilities, restructured pay schedules, and bigger allowances.
The administration has refused, claiming that the current economic situation prevents it from raising the salary budget.
Thousands of health workers have gone on strike, leaving only emergency services at public hospitals operational and many routine services on hold.
Workers in the electricity sector are not on strike, but they have vowed to strike if the government proceeds with plans to sell a thermal power plant to a US firm.
