35 trains cancelled this morning as railway strike continues

Sri Lanka Railways (SLR) stated that a total of 35 scheduled train journeys were cancelled this morning due to the continued strike by the Locomotive Operating Engineers’ Union of the railway department.

The Locomotive Operating Engineers’ Union says that the strike launched by the locomotive drivers will continue for the third consecutive day today (09).

They have been on strike since midnight on Thursday, (June 06) over several key demands including solutions to the delays in second-class promotions of locomotive drivers, delays in the recruitment process and several other issues.

It is also mentioned that only locomotive drivers of two of the five running sheds have joined the strike and due to this there will be no power set trains operating.

Meanwhile, the Secretary of the union S.R.C.M. Senanayake stated that if the authorities fail to address their demands, they would be taking steps to intensify their trade union action.

However, in response to an inquiry made by Ada Derana, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Transport and Highways revealed that they plan to file a complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) regarding the ongoing strike action.

It is stated that the complaint would be filed considering the information received about 21 individuals who are carrying out the strike to inconvenience the government.