Brandix Essentials, an apparel manufacturing company in the Koggala Free Trade Zone (KFTZ) is being accused of locking out about 1,500 workers after they stopped work to protest the slashing of their annual bonus by half. The incident had taken place on 30 November. 

The factory management had informed workers two days earlier their bonus would be cut because the factory was running at a loss. The next day workers had refused to work and gathered in the factory canteen demanding full payment of the bonus. After employees went home, management informed them by text message that the factory was closed indefinitely.

Fearing job losses, some workers had declared they would accept the pay cut but management had told them to send a letter accepting that they had made a mistake by refusing to work. Workers rejected this directive.

This week officials from the Board of Investment met with management and the employees’ council at the factory. They reached an agreement to call workers back to work, but only if they accepted the company would pay only half of the bonus.

Brandix is one of the largest multinational apparel companies in South Asia, with 53,000 workers at 23 factories in Sri Lanka, four in India and one in Bangladesh. According to Owler.com, the company’s income increased 4.9 per cent from USD 782 million in December 2021 to USD 820 million in August 2022.

The Koggala factory, however, had been closed for 10 days from 2 September because of a lack of orders.

(Source : World Socialist Website)