Mr. Manusha Nanayakkara, the Minister of Labor and Foreign Employment, is taking steps to amend the Labor Law to include provisions for young men and women between the ages of 16-20 to engage in part-time jobs subject to a maximum of twenty hours a week.
Labor and Foreign Employment Minister Manusha said that creating a sense of the dignity of labor that respects all jobs equally, accustoming them not to treat any job differently on any basis, acclimating young people to the work environment at school age, and not doing so is the cause of many problems that have arisen in the labor sector.
The Ministries are focusing on the above amendments with the aim of creating an investment-friendly workforce, acquainting them with the conditions of the international labor market at school age, and instilling the pride of independence in the youth in education.
Young people of this age are allowed to work for a maximum of 4 hours a day, 5 days a week, or a maximum of 20 hours a week, including weekends.
Except for the currently identified 72 hazardous job categories, opportunities are provided to engage in part-time jobs related to restaurants, supermarkets, and cleaning, and it is mandatory for the relevant employers to provide formal training to these young people.
It is the responsibility of the employer not to offer permanent employment opportunities under any circumstances and to provide adequate wages, security, and dignity.
Similarly, corresponding to this, the legal conditions related to E.P.F. and ETFs payments are also being revised.
