All health workers, except doctors, to protest

All health sector employees except doctors will go on an island-wide strike on Tuesday (Jan. 16), the Paramedical Services Front (PMSF) said.

President of the association, Upul Rohana, said that the token strike would be launched in conjunction with 27 trade unions in the health sector.

The Director of Colombo National Hospital, Dr. Rukshan Bellana, emphasized that patients were served dinner close to midnight on Thursday due to a health workers’ strike.

Hospital services came to a standstill last week after paramedical and supplementary health services’ trade unions resorted to token strikes in protest of the government’s decision to increase the Disturbance, Availability, and Transport (DAT) allowance for doctors by Rs. 35,000 to Rs. 70,000.

A 24-hour strike was launched by the professionals affiliated with supplementary medical services on Tuesday (Jan.9), followed by the 48-hour strike initiated by the trade unions attached to the Paramedical Services Front (PMSF) on Wednesday (Jan.10).

The paramedical services’ strike was joined by the Public Health Inspectors’ Union (PHIU), the Association of Sri Lanka Ophthalmologists, the Family Health Services Union, the Government Nursing Officers’ Association, and several other trade unions.

Against this backdrop, hospital secretaries, administration officers, and healthcare assistants also engaged in a one-day token strike from 6:00 a.m. on Thursday (Jan.11).