Relief benefits of Rs. 10 million distributed by the Employees’ Welfare Fund to migrant workers

Feb 11, Colombo: Provision of relief benefits by the Employees’ Welfare Fund for migrant workers who have died, became ill and injured while working abroad but are not entitled to insurance compensation was held under Piyankara Jayaratne, State Minister of for Foreign Employment Promotion and Market Diversification at the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) Thursday (10).

All Sri Lankans who register with the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment and go abroad for employment are entitled to free insurance.

The insurance is valid for 2 or 3 years, the validity period of registration with the Bureau and covers compensation for death and serious illness, accident and harassment.

Cases which are not covered under the insurance scheme, are referred to the Special Committee of the Employees’ Welfare Fund for consideration on humanitarian grounds for the most justifiable reasons and relief is provided based on the decisions taken by the committee.

The Bureau’s Employees’ Welfare Fund provides financial assistance in the form of relief benefits for migrant workers and their dependents who register with the Bureau for overseas employment but do not extend the registration after expiration and suffer serious illness, accident, harassment or death after the expiration of coverage.

A grant of Rs. 9.95 million has been approved for 84 beneficiaries under 40 case files approved by the Employees’ Welfare Fund Committee at its meeting held on 12 October 2021. Under the approval, checks worth Rs. 5.25 million were issued to 47 beneficiaries in 20 cases in the Western Province yesterday (10).