Topic
Employment
1,754 speeches · 310 speakers
Party share
By the speaker's party · counts only, no scoring. "Unattributed" = speeches not resolved to an MP.
Most active on this topic
| # | Member | Speeches |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hon. Sajith Premadasa, M.P. SJB | 84 |
| 2 | Hon. Ravi Karunanayake, M.P. NDF | 78 |
| 3 | Hon. (Dr.) Anil Jayantha, M.P. JJB | 60 |
| 4 | Hon. (Dr.) Nalinda Jayatissa, M.P. JJB | 45 |
| 5 | Hon. Mahinda Jayasinghe, M.P. JJB | 41 |
| 6 | Hon. Sunil Handunnetti, M.P. JJB | 32 |
| 7 | Hon. Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, M.P. JJB | 31 |
| 8 | Hon. Chathuranga Abeysinghe, M.P. JJB | 30 |
| 9 | Hon. Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, M.P. NDF | 29 |
| 10 | Hon. Dayasiri Jayasekara, Attorney at Law, M.P. SJB | 23 |
Speeches
1,754 on this topic- 22 July 2025 The Hon. (Dr.) Anil Jayantha JJB AI summary Workers covered by the National Minimum Wage Act exclude plantation workers and some other sectors, whose wages are set through Wages Boards. Dr. Anil Jayantha said discussions are continuing with workers and employers on improving plantation wages, currently set at Rs. 1,700 per day, made up of Rs. 1,350 plus Rs. 350 for overtime or extra work. He noted that while the general monthly minimum wage is Rs. 30,000, a plantation worker earning Rs. 1,700 for more than 25 days would exceed that amount. Oral Question: National Minimum Wage and Plantation Workers Wages Read →
- 22 July 2025 The Hon. Sajith Premadasa - Leader of the Opposition SJB AI summary Sajith Premadasa said the Opposition supports the Orders increasing the national minimum monthly wage to Rs. 27,000 by December and Rs. 30,000 from January, but argued that the Government has not implemented its policy pledge to provide a Rs. 1,700 daily wage to plantation workers. Citing the Wages Boards Ordinance and related legislation governing agricultural worker allowances, he asked when the pledge would be fulfilled for the tea, rubber, coconut and other export crop sectors. He also asked whether the Government would support an amendment proposed by Mano Ganesan, V.S. Radhakrishnan and Palani Digambaram to implement the Rs. 1,700 daily wage. Oral Question: National Minimum Wage and Plantation Workers Wages Read →
- 22 July 2025 The Hon. Rohana Bandara AI summary The Member asked the Minister of Labour to provide year-by-year details from 2015 to the present on the number of active Employees’ Provident Fund accounts and the annual interest rates paid to contributors. He also requested an explanation of the factors used to determine those interest rates and the measures taken to strengthen the EPF, and asked for reasons if the information could not be provided. Oral Question: Active Accounts in Employees' Provident Fund (Q.4/2024) Read →
- 22 July 2025 The Hon. Hesha Withanage Ankumbura Arachchi SJB AI summary Hon. Hesha Withanage Ankumbura Arachchi presented the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Education, Labour Force and Human Capital’s report covering amendments to minimum wage and budgetary relief allowance legislation, as well as the 2022 annual reports of the National Institute of Labour Studies and the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health. The report was ordered to lie upon the Table. Committee Reports: Environment, Education, Infrastructure Bills Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Imran Maharoof SJB AI summary Hon. Imran Maharoof asked why permits for night diving to catch cuttlefish, suspended since 2019, have not been restored, noting its foreign exchange value and asking whether NARA or NAQDA has issued guidance. He requested annual data on income from night-caught cuttlefish for 2015–2025 and sought clarification on lawful alternatives for fishermen affected by the prohibition on purse seine fishing, particularly in his district. Adjournment - Fishing Practices in Trincomalee and Parliamentary Decentralized Funds Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Ravi Karunanayake NDF AI summary Hon. Ravi Karunanayake supported proposals to build a production and knowledge-based economy, arguing that youth across all communities need access to capital rather than Government jobs. He called for the Central Bank to allocate at least 10 percent of its specific lending schemes to youth entrepreneurship and said its independence should not be used to obstruct national fiscal policy. He proposed redirecting funds currently used for entities such as SriLankan Airlines toward youth enterprises, including support for small rice mills, and claimed about Rs. 150 billion could help create one million youth entrepreneurs. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. (Dr.) Anil Jayantha - Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Economic Development JJB AI summary The Minister supported the motion on financing and empowering entrepreneurship, arguing that economic stabilization, confidence, good governance, and industrial harmony are necessary for investment and growth. He said entrepreneurship should focus on productive value addition and integration into value chains, while labour laws should be consolidated into a modern framework to improve workplace relations. He outlined existing SME and concessional loan schemes, noted geographic disparities and misuse of some funds, and said the Government would use data, training, credit guarantees, ADB-supported credit lines, and ultimately a Development Bank and regional finance mechanisms to support viable businesses nationwide. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. (Dr.) M.L.A.M. Hizbullah SLMC AI summary Dr. M.L.A.M. Hizbullah argued that youth support should focus on enabling self-employment rather than providing monthly stipends. He called for State action to equip young people in sectors such as agriculture and technology so they can generate income and contribute to national assets, and urged concrete implementation of the motion. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. (Dr.) M.L.A.M. Hizbullah SLMC AI summary Hon. (Dr.) M.L.A.M. Hizbullah supported the motion on ensuring livelihoods and stable incomes for youth over 18. He argued that limited university access and inadequate loan facilities require expansion of local non-State higher education capacity and better financing mechanisms. He proposed a dedicated scheme to provide young entrepreneurs with loans, technology support, digital skills, and start-up assistance through banks and other channels as part of broader youth-focused economic development. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Lasith Bhashana Gamage JJB AI summary Hon. Lasith Bhashana Gamage supported Hon. Ravi Karunanayake’s motion, arguing that youth development should begin with cultivating civic responsibility, clear educational pathways, and productive attitudes rather than relying only on employment or entrepreneurship slogans. He called for restructuring school education and integrating vocational education into curricula, citing the “Sahodara Piyapath” programme with the University of Peradeniya as evidence that many students lack targets for A/Ls or further study. He also noted ongoing discussions under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to promote agricultural entrepreneurship through youth camps, the National Youth Services Council, State farms, and coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. (Dr.) Ramanathan Archchuna Independent Group 17 - Jaffna AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Ramanathan Archchuna supported the motion on youth self-employment while highlighting unemployment among graduates in the Northern Province and urging replies and action on pending appointments for indigenous medical graduates. He argued that the North and East could build economies through agriculture and marine resources, requested removal of large Indian fishing vessels from Mayiliddy harbour to create opportunities for local youth, and called for the release of Rs. 10 million in decentralized funds to Jaffna District MPs. He also referenced concerns over Thayiddi and Mayiliddy viharas and the Chemmani exhumations before being timed out. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Shanakiyan Rajaputhiran Rasamanickam ITAK AI summary Supported the motion in principle but argued that implementation depends on macroeconomic stability, structural reforms, and stronger growth, noting World Bank projections of about 3.1 percent growth in 2026. He raised concerns about limited university access, youth unemployment, competition in three-wheeler livelihoods, and brain drain, calling for reforms including constitutional change, devolution, and empowered local administrative units to attract investment. He also tabled a letter from the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi to President Anura Kumara on truth-seeking, international collaboration, and justice in the Chemmani mass grave investigation, linking accountability to retaining Tamil youth and building trust. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Thanura Dissanayake JJB AI summary Thanura Dissanayake stated that the Government supports shifting the economy toward wider production and regional participation, arguing that youth employment and entrepreneurship require planned support for new products and markets. He said past production and trade had been concentrated among a limited group, leaving some provinces with weak GDP contributions, and called for expansion across all regions including the North, East, and Central highlands. He noted that a national entrepreneurship development policy is lacking and said the Government is preparing an integrated strategic framework this year, while also referring to trade diplomacy such as reduced US tariffs and UK tariff preferences as ways to expand opportunities. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri SJB AI summary Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri seconded Hon. Ravi Karunanayake’s Private Member’s Motion, urging stronger alignment between education, vocational training and entrepreneurship. He called for skills and entrepreneurial mindsets to be developed from primary education, greater social recognition for skilled trades and agriculture, and policies to localize manufacturing through assembly and capability-building. He also asked the Government to present practical programmes addressing income pressures and the rising cost of living. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Ravi Karunanayake NDF AI summary Hon. Ravi Karunanayake moved a motion proposing that every citizen reaching 18 should have a right to gainful employment or financial assistance to become self-employed, arguing that youth unemployment and frustration require a shift from welfare dependency to entrepreneurship and work-oriented policies. He called for seed capital of about Rs. 500,000 per youth, Central Bank funding windows for youth, women and MSMEs, tax relief for young e-commerce earners, and reforms to credit, university access, skills training and overseas employment standards. He also urged a focus on AI, innovation, renewable energy and trained migration, citing Sri Lanka’s fiscal constraints, post-bankruptcy recovery, and past episodes of youth unrest as context for the proposal. Private Members' Motion No. 4: Making Every Youth Gainfully Employed Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Rohana Bandara AI summary Hon. Rohana Bandara seconded the motion and argued that the livestock sector can reduce unemployment and improve nutrition, but dairy farmers face setbacks from COVID-era disruptions, pricing issues, rejected milk collection, fodder shortages, and restrictions linked to protected areas. He called for coordination among Wildlife, Forest, and Livestock authorities to protect traditional dairy livelihoods, especially where grazing lands and animal recovery are affected by sanctuary boundaries, and cautioned that importing cattle without management support is ineffective. He also raised a local eviction issue affecting a dairy shed operator in Anuradhapura and proposed organizing kurakkan producers in the North Central Province into cooperatives to stabilize prices and prevent exploitation. Private Members' Motion No. 3: Livestock Sector Enhancement Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri SJB AI summary Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri moved a motion calling on the Government to prepare a programme to increase the livestock sector’s contribution to national production. He argued that developing dairy and poultry could reduce imports, save foreign exchange, improve child and maternal nutrition, and create rural employment and SME opportunities. He urged the Government to present concrete short-, medium-, and long-term plans with locations, targets, and timelines, while prosecuting corruption separately rather than relying on political recriminations. Private Members' Motion No. 3: Livestock Sector Enhancement Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Dayasiri Jayasekara, Attorney-at-Law SJB AI summary Supported Rohana Bandara’s proposal to strengthen the rural bank and co-operative system, citing their role in rural credit, women’s livelihoods, and small entrepreneurship, while calling for a clear regulatory framework to prevent mismanagement and deposit theft. Requested that rural banks be included in the Central Bank reimbursement mechanism for the senior citizens’ fixed deposit interest top-up, warning that deposits are shifting to commercial banks. Also raised concerns over reduced margins for co-operative fuel outlets, political interference in North Western Province co-operatives, and the impact of 18% VAT on co-operative sales divisions, urging exemptions or relief. Private Members' Motion No. 1: Co-operative Rural Banks Supervision Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. (Dr.) Anil Jayantha - Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Economic Development JJB AI summary Sri Lanka’s apparel exports to the United States were clarified as accounting for about 69–70 per cent, higher than the previously cited 60 per cent. The Minister said the matter had been discussed the previous day, further meetings with industry stakeholders were scheduled, and the Government would continue addressing it through diplomatic engagement. US Tariff Duties - Member's Attention Matter and Discussion Read →
- 11 July 2025 The Hon. Sajith Premadasa - Leader of the Opposition SJB AI summary Hon. Sajith Premadasa said the Opposition would provide bipartisan support to secure a favourable outcome on US tariffs, noting the importance of the US market for Sri Lankan exports and apparel. While welcoming the reduction from 44 per cent to 30 per cent, he argued that Sri Lanka must assess its competitiveness against exporters such as Vietnam, India and Bangladesh, given the price sensitivity of apparel. He proposed intensive diplomatic engagement over the next three weeks with US trade agencies, Congressional Sri Lanka Caucuses and the White House, including the Chief of Staff, to protect export earnings and around 350,000 apparel jobs. US Tariff Duties - Member's Attention Matter and Discussion Read →