Apparel gears to become a better place to work
Sri Lanka’s apparel industry is fighting hard to find more workers and has not shed the possibility of hiring from other countries.
“We have done a lot of work but due to budgetary constraints we had to limit it (the campaign) to social media,” Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) Ex-Co Member and head of the “Matai Mage Ratatai” campaign Felix Fernando said. He is also the Group Director of Omega Line.
By creating whatsapp groups and creating awareness since the launch in March and April the industry has been initiating advertisements on television and also during the cricket world cup, he explained.
Videos were shared highlighting success stories of some of the employees that started out at the factory level and have progressed in their careers, he said.
In addition, JAAF is also trying to obtain the services of a mobile company to introduce a special package for the industry in a bid to recognise the workers for their contribution to the economy. As part of this campaign they would also include the “Matai Mage Ratatai” song as a ring-in tone as well.
Further, employees would be able to engage in education and entertainment via the mobile platform by watching motivational videos and improving their English language skills, Mr. Fernando said.
Moreover, he said there will in future be a certification provided by the Vocational Training Authority to ensure that the employees are skilled workers thereby effectively removing the tag that factory workers are uneducated.
“We want to remove the image that ‘uneducated girls’ are working at the factories, so we provide them with a VTA NVQ level 3 or 4 certification that could also allow them to pursue an education upto the degree level,” Mr. Fernando said. This would ensure they will be considered technical grade personnel.
In the meantime, it is learnt that the industry is working on the possibility of also hiring foreign workers since there are still some issues to be sorted out.
Funds for the Rs.60 million campaign has been jointly provided with 50 per cent from the Export Development Board (EDB) and the rest from the industry.
The industry plans on achieving an export income worth US$ 10 billion by 2025.