Railway engine drivers threaten to strike on 30 and 31 July
July 28, 2025 11:24 am
The Locomotive Operating Engineers’ Union has announced that locomotive engine drivers will launch an island-wide 48-hour token strike starting from midnight tomorrow (29), citing unresolved issues.
Union representatives stated that if their concerns are not addressed within the 48-hour period, they will proceed with the planned strike action, which is expected to disrupt all train operations across the country.
However, they noted that if a satisfactory solution is provided before the deadline, the strike will be called off.
Chairman of the Union, K.U. Konthasinghe said the token strike would be staged on 30 and 31 July if a positive response is not received to the letter submitted to the Ministry of Transport and the Department of Railways on July 22, 2025.
He emphasized that the strike will definitely proceed unless a decisive solution is offered—particularly concerning administrative issues and infrastructure challenges faced by the train driver workforce.
Konthasinghe added that the union expects a response either today or tomorrow.
