News
GMOA warns of fresh action as tussle with Govt drags on
View(s):The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) has warned that it will continue intensifying its trade union action until it receives a favourable response from the government to its demands.
The GMOA will convene a crisis meeting on Wednesday to decide on fresh trade union action, Secretary Dr Prabath Sugathadasa said. He dismissed allegations by government politicians that the union was blocking the annual transfers of medical officers, adding that the GMOA was cooperating in the process despite its trade union action.
Dr Prabath Sugathadasa
He charged that certain Health Ministry officials may be deliberately failing to upgrade the ministry’s database to conceal the actual figures of the transfers already implemented.
Explaining the fresh trade union action, Dr Sugathadasa said it began on February 18 at 8 a.m. Accordingly, medical officers (MOs) at the office and field levels are refraining from submitting daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly data to the health system.
As part of its trade union action, the GMOA has urged specialist-grade medical officers (consultants) to withdraw from cover duties and perform only their officially assigned responsibilities. The union’s main demand includes that doctors be recognised as an exclusive service category within the Sri Lanka Medical Service, with a distinct salary structure comparable to that of the judiciary and the Attorney General’s Department.
Among the union’s other demands are the restoration of duty-free concessions to import vehicles, which they say is a necessity to serve the patients around the clock; the benefits outlined in the Public Administration Circular 22/99, which provides drivers, vehicles, and fuel to state-sector executive officers but excludes medical professionals; and solutions to the crisis involving a lack of surgical consumables and drugs owing to procurement delays and poor distribution.
Despite the trade union action, the Sunday Times learns that many doctors are not strictly following trade union strikes. Even though they officially support the union, they continue to treat patients and prescribe medicine.
Deputy Health Minister Dr Hansaka Wijemuni told the Sunday Times the GMOA’s trade union actions are primarily limited to media platforms such as newspapers, radio, and television.
“These issues are not effectively taking place within hospitals, and the general public is not feeling a significant impact on healthcare services,” the minister said.
He also said most doctors are not following the trade union actions, which they label as inhumane.
The deputy minister confirmed that the annual transfers have not been implemented for about six years, leaving nearly 7,000 doctors waiting since 2018 or 2019, stuck in their current positions. He said the influence and interference of the GMOA caused the prolonged delay in these transfers.
To prevent service interruptions that would occur if all 7,000 were moved at once, the government is transferring about 300 doctors per day. The entire process is expected to be completed within 2 to 2.5 months, the deputy minister said.
Meanwhile, the GMOA met with Malwathu and Asgiri Mahanayake Theras on Wednesday to explain to them the current situation.
“The Mahanayakes noted that the government is unwilling to listen to professionals,” Dr Sugathadasa said.
The healthcare system relies on hospital data for analysis, decision-making, and forecasting. Without it, the Health Ministry and relevant officials are unable to function effectively in these areas.
The GMOA also wants the DAT (Disturbance, Availability, and Transport) Allowance to be converted into a fixed allowance and added to state doctors’ salaries to avoid what it calls administrative harassment. It points out that calculations suggest that state-sector doctors need to receive Rs 270,000, but they receive only Rs 70,000. The union demands an immediate increase, pointing out that the Treasury in 2018 recommended a salary scale of Rs 120,000.
The best way to say that you found the home of your dreams is by finding it on Hitad.lk. We have listings for apartments for sale or rent in Sri Lanka, no matter what locale you're looking for! Whether you live in Colombo, Galle, Kandy, Matara, Jaffna and more - we've got them all!