The Ceylon Federation of Labour (CFL) is an organisation bringing together

trade unions A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and Employee ben ...

in the private, semi-government and co-operative sectors of

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

History

The Ceylon Federation of Labour was registered as a federation of unions by the Workers & Peasants Union, which was led by the Radical Party under the influence of the ideas of

M.N. Roy Manabendra Nath Roy (born Narendra Nath Bhattacharya, better known as M. N. Roy; 21 March 1887 – 25 January 1954) was an Indian revolutionary, radical activist and political theorist, as well as a noted philosopher in the 20th century. Roy ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. When the

Lanka Sama Samaja Party The Lanka Sama Samaja Party, often abbreviated as LSSP (Literal translation, literally: Lanka Socialist Party, Sinhalese language, Sinhala: ලංකා සම සමාජ පක්ෂය, Tamil language, Tamil: லங்கா சமசமா� ...

re-commenced its trade union activity in the post-war period, it did so in co-operation with the Workers & Peasants Union and gradually took over leadership of the CFL by 1946. The CFL was involved in the

general strike A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large co ...

of 1946 and its successor of 1947. It was the prime mover in the

hartal Hartal () is a term in many Indian languages for a strike action that was first used during the Indian independence movement (also known as the nationalist movement) of the early 20th century. A hartal is a mass protest, often involving a total sh ...

of 1953.

Affiliated unions

* All Ceylon Commercial and Industrial Workers' Union (ACCIWU) * All Ceylon Oil Workers’ Union (ACOWU) * All Ceylon United Motor Workers' Union (ACUMWU) * Lanka Estate Workers' Union (LEWU) * Lanka Hotel Employees Union (LHEU) *

United Corporations and Mercantile Union The United Corporations and Mercantile Union (UCMU) is a Sri Lankan trade union which brings together workers in the public sector. The UCMU was founded in 1968. Dr N.M. Perera became its President and Anil Moonesinghe became its General Secreta ...

(UCMU) * United Port Workers Union (UPWU)

Noted leaders

* Dr

N.M. Perera Nanayakkarapathirage Martin Perera, commonly known as Dr. N. M. Perera ( Sinhala එන්.එම්.පෙරේරා ; 6 June 1904 – 14 August 1979), was one of the leaders of the Sri Lankan Trotskyist Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP). He ...

* Dr

Colvin R de Silva Colvin Reginald de Silva (1907 – 27 February 1989; commonly known as Colvin R. de Silva) was a Cabinet Minister of Plantation Industries and Constitutional Affairs, prominent member of parliament, Trotskyist leader and lawyer in Sri Lanka. ...

* D.G. William ('Galle Face' William) * W.P. Perera ('Elephant' Perera) * Batty Weerakoon * S. Siriwardena

References

Batty Weerakoon, The Ceylon Federation of Labour & the Trade Union Movement in Sri Lanka (1932-1975), (abridged version)
accessed on 4 November 2005.

accessed 4 November 2005.

accessed 4 November 2005. *

James Jupp James Jupp AM (born 1932) was a British-Australian political scientist and author. He was Director of the Centre for Immigration and Multicultural Studies in the Research School of Social Sciences at the Australian National University and an A ...

, ''Sri Lanka — Third World Democracy'', Frank Cass, London, 1978. Trade unions in Sri Lanka {{SriLanka-stub