The government has already ended Telecom's monopoly on Internet services, allowing private ISPs to set up their own international gateways, and has opened up domestic long-distance telephone services to private companies. Telecom will be corporatised as Bharat Sanchar Nigam by October 1, in preparation for its full privatisation. Leprosy hospital workers in Sri Lanka protest overtime restrictions Staff at the Leprosy Hospital in Handala, a northern suburb of Colombo, has been boycotting overtime work for the past fortnight, in protest at a management decision to restrict overtime to 20 hours per month. The workers rely on the extra hours to supplement their wages. They are also angry that they have not been paid for overtime worked in June and July.
Management says it was forced to implement restrictions due to government funding cutbacks.
The overtime restriction has reduced the level of patient care. But since the management put restrictions on our overtime we have been forced to stop our daily work by 2.30pm. The preparation of dinner for patients has been stopped and now food has to be bought from outside. The government promulgated the order banning leave on September 5, using the Essential Service orders, to prevent workers reporting in sick. According to the Joint Trade Union Front of the CEB more than 60 percent of the workforce participated in the action despite the government ban.