Strengthening the Human Resources for Health roadmap through promotion of inter-sectoral Social Dialogue for improved industrial relations in the Health Sector

Sri Lanka does not have an explicit health workforce policy, the current health workforce action plan expires in 2018 and a number of different government directorates are responsible for the planning, recruitment, training and deployment of health workers. Workforce planning and staff establishments are not aligned with needs and data on the private sector workforce is weak and incomplete. There is inadequate coordination and policy coherence across sectors of government on health worker issues including labour mobility. Health workforce issues form a major barrier to the planned reorganization of primary health care that is key to the achievement of universal health coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals. The health workforce is concentrated in urban areas and at the tertiary and secondary level of healthcare. The public service plays a central role in efficient delivery of services to the citizenry and hence a well-functioning public sector is an essential factor in socio-economic development in Sri Lanka. In order to develop a strong public service, it is essential to promote better labour-management relations and proper human resources planning and development to ensure effective and efficient delivery of services. However, labour-management relations in the public service, especially the health sector, has become a complex issue governed by different dynamics and requires a multi-pronged tripartite approach and unique solutions to meet its needs. Although there are many trade unions representing the interests of health workers, a culture of social dialogue and collective bargaining are in most part weak or non-existent. The absence of such a culture and mechanisms for social dialogue results in strikes and work stoppages that greatly inconvenience the public. Hence, creating an environment for the workers and the management to solve their problems through engagement and participation is an urgent need. The Working for Health Programme aims to accelerate implementation of the 2030 Agenda and strengthen national policy capacity in Sri Lanka and Road to expand and transform the health and social workforce for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals. The Programme provides direct assistance to governments, social partners and key stakeholders to strengthen institutional capacity, analytics and inter-sectoral policy dialogue in order to develop, finance and implement enhanced national health workforce strategies that: develop the supply of appropriately skilled workforce to meet public needs; create decent jobs that meet both public and workforce needs; optimize the retention, recruitment and performance of the workforce; and achieve mutuality of benefits from the international labour mobility of health workers.

Project symbol

LKA/19/02/WHO

Admin unit

CO-Colombo

Start date

15/08/2019

End date

31/12/2019

Total allocation

20865

Total expenditure

Status

Closed

6510

Development Partners

World Health Organization

Country/Countries

Sri Lanka

Outcomes

Outcome 1: Strong tripartite constituents and influential and inclusive social dialogue