Workers must not be taxed to compensate for loss of state revenue due to mismanagement – trade union collective

Opposition to the proposed surcharge tax of 25 percent on workers’ social security and welfare funds is growing with a collective of trade unions representing several sectors alleging that workers are not taxed in any decent society to compensate for the loss of government revenue due to financial mismanagement and lack of clear economic policy.

Anton Marcus, Joint Secretary, Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees Union has issued the following statement on behalf of Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees’ Union (FTZ & GSEU), Sri Lanka Nidahas Sevaka Sangamaya (SLNSS), Ceylon Mercantile and Industrial Workers’ Union (CMU), Ceylon Federation of Trade Union (CFTU), Intercompany Employees’ Union (IEU), Ceylon Bank Employees Union (CBEU), Lanka Jathika Estate Workers Union (LJEWU), National Union of Sri Lankan Seafarers (NUSS), Jathika Seva Sangamaya (JSS), Ceylon Estate Staff Union (CESU), United Federation of Labour (UFL), and the Joint Plantation Trade Union Centre (JPTUC): The Government’s decision by way of a gazette notification issued on 07 February 2022 for a bill to be presented in pPrliament to levy a “one-time” Surcharge Tax of 25 per ent on the gross income of over Rs.02 billion during the revenue year 2020 April 01 to 2021 March 31, will include both the “Employees’ Provident Fund” (EPF) and the “Employees’ Trust Fund” (ETF) as provided for under “Division III: Trusts and Unit Trusts” of the Inland Revenue Act, No. 24 of 2017.

This we say is both immoral and unethical as social security and welfare funds of employees and also the poor are never taxed in any decent society to compensate for the loss of revenue for the State due to financial mismanagement and lack of clear economic policy.

It is calculated the EPF alone would be taxed around Rs.62 billion once again on its already taxed income for the revenue year 2020-2021 that concluded almost a year ago. This massive amount of money that could be taxed from the EPF alone, with more tax from the ETF too is money that should be divided among 2.9 million employees who are active contributing members of the EPF and 19.4 million members in all.

We wish to note, the previous government too imposed a one-time tax levy on the EPF in 2016 that was promised as never to be repeated. Sadly, it is coming back again as another “one time only” Surcharge Tax that now becomes a precedent for all governments in the future for “easy revenue”.

EPF is a social security and welfare fund for private and semi-State sector employees with no monthly retirement salary to tide over their last years out of employment. This fund needs to be further strengthened for the private sector and semi-State sector employees with health benefits and other emergency welfare services. It is disgusting therefore to have governments compensating their inability to manage national finances efficiently, squeezing off large chunks of money from employee benefits, instead.

As a collective of trade unions in the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC), we wish to demand from this government to immediately withdraw all provisions in the proposed bill gazetted on 07 February (2022) in levying any tax by any name, from employee social security and welfare funds, be it the EPF, ETF or any other and request the government to seek more progressive measures in collecting required revenue for the State.