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Station masters to launch trade union action from Jan. 23
Colombo, Jan. 19 (Daily Mirror) - The Sri Lanka Railway Station Masters' Association (SLRSMA) has announced plans to launch immediate trade union action over prolonged delays in implementing the approved recruitment scheme for their service.
Association Chief Secretary R.M.S. Kasun Chamara Jayasekera said the action was prompted by the failure of authorities to submit the required copies of the amended recruitment scheme for the signature of the Secretary of the Public Service Commission, as well as delays in forwarding recommendations for interim arrangements related to the scheme.
He said that the Public Service Commission had already approved the recruitment procedure for Railway Station Masters on August 19, 2025, as confirmed by letter No. PSC/EST/05-01-23/01/2020, copies of which were sent to the Railways General Manager and the Director General of Establishments.
However, the union alleged that the issue of recruiting female station masters – which was not included in the Commission’s original recommendations – has been retained without further referral to the Public Service Commission, causing additional complications.
According to the association, Station Masters have been severely inconvenienced due to the continued delays. They also claimed that amendments not approved by the Public Service Commission had been included in the recruitment procedure. Although a discussion had been requested with the Railways General Manager to resolve the matter, no such meeting has been arranged so far.
The union highlighted that any amendments to the recruitment procedure must be prepared only after careful study of labour laws, job responsibilities, and expert recommendations, and must be submitted separately to the Public Service Commission for approval. They claimed that the Railways General Manager has no authority to introduce personal changes to a procedure already approved by the Commission.
They further charged that interim arrangements required to resolve seniority issues arising from the new amendments had not yet been referred to the Public Service Commission, despite repeated requests. As a result, promotions within the Station Master Service have been severely affected.
The Chief Secretary also said that while other railway grades continue to receive promotions every five years without similar procedural delays, Station Masters alone are facing injustice due to the non-implementation of the approved recruitment scheme.
Although the President, Prime Minister, Minister and Deputy Minister of Transport, the Secretary to the Ministry of Transport, and the Railways General Manager were informed in writing on January 9, 2026, no solutions have been provided so far, the union said.
In this backdrop, the union announced that it would resort to trade union action after January 23, 2026.
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