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Current Activities

 

 

  • Implementing a pension scheme and a social protection scheme for the professional journalists.

              The Pension Scheme


 A guarantee of  a stable financial situation upon the retirement has been a
long felt need  of  the Sri Lankan media personnel. Many a personal accounts of journalists underscored the need for a  strong financial guarantee for the media personnel during their twilight age.  It is under these circumstances, that the  new batch of office bearers of the Executive Committee of the SLWJA made the pension scheme a top priority in their agenda.

Following an active campaigning by the SLWJA, the Minister of Media and
Information Anura Priyadarshana Yapa on  July 4, 2006 submitted a new draft
to Parliament, formulated in coordination with the Media Ministry  and the
Social Security Council.

The draft was passed in the House on August 8, 2006. Full time media
personnel, within  the age limits of 18-55 are qualified to contribute to
the social security benefit scheme. In their retirement, they are entitled
to a payment of 10,000 rupees per month  with a 5% increase in every five
year period. the Government of
Sri Lanka has provided a grant  of 100 million rupees as the initial
capital of the pension fund.

For further details, please see the Act of Social Security Benefit Fund No
29 of 2006.

  • Establishment of a trust for the welfare and improvement of the journalists' families. Collecting funds for this trust is in progress now.

        The Welfare Fund

The Welfare Fund has been established to provide financial assistance to
the members in urgent financial needs.
The fund shall be governed by a Special Administrative Committee. The
President, Secretary and Treasure of the Sri Lanka  Working Journalist
Association should act in their capacity as the President, Secretary and
Treasure of the Special Administrative Committee.

The contributions to the fund will include monthly membership fees of  the
members and contributions by the well wishers

 

  • Working in collaboration with five main media organizations in Sri Lanka under the guidance of IFJ and involve in activities of the Voice of Reconciliation Programme  which aimed at protection of the free media, rights of the journalists and enhancement of the professionalism in media. Under this programme, regional and national level award festivals are organized for the provincial journalists.

 

  • Campaign against the threats and assaults faced by the journalists and media organizations.

 

 

  • Collecting information of the journalists who are retired and still in service over the age of 55. The objective of collecting this information is to establishing a programme uplift the living standard of these experienced veteran  journalists.   

 

  • In order to make our organisation accessible for the provincial journalists, groundwork is being done to incorporate all district level organizations of the  provincial journalists into a strong National Union.



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