State bank employees protest in Nuwara Eliya

State bank employees staged a protest on 12 August in front of the Nuwara Eliya Post Office, calling for urgent reforms to address long-standing grievances over pensions and staff benefits.

Organised by the Ceylon Bank Employees Union, the protest drew attention to growing dissatisfaction over the limitation of bonuses and the disparity in benefits for employees recruited after 1996.

Umesh Asanka, a central committee member of the union, highlighted the issue of pension inequality. “There are six state banks in Sri Lanka, but only three employees of three are currently eligible for pensions. We are demanding that the pension scheme be extended to the remaining three banks,” he said.

Protesters also called for stronger governance at state banks and equal treatment for all employees, regardless of their recruitment year.