A delegation representing the Union of Myanmar Federation of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) visited Sri Lanka recently. The three-day study tour was an initiative under the ‘Strengthening the Capacity of Employers’ Organizations Project’ of the ILO Bureau for Employers’ Activities - ACT EMP.
The delegation comprised two ILO officials from the ILO Yangon Office and four officials from the UMFCCI. The UMFCCI set up a separate department as an employer organization early this year and the study tour was to enable the officers attached to the UMFCCI to understand how an Employer Organization (EO) functions.
The delegation was given an introduction to the activities of the Employers’ Federation of Ceylon (EFC), its membership strength and the broad spectrum of services provided by it, including representative services, HR and legal solutions and training. It also enabled insights into EFC’s Employers’ Network on Disability and its new initiatives such as the Employers’ National Network of Youth Initiatives (ENNYI) project.
“The objective was to give them a holistic perspective of how an EO works and evolves, by catering to the requirements of its membership,” said EFC’s CEO, Kanishka Weerasinghe.
Project Coordinator for the ILO project on Developing the Capacity of Employer Organizations in Myanmar, Jared Bissinger said, “I hope they can also be more conversant with what a mature employer organization is all about - it is not a zero-sum interaction with labour, but instead a dialogue to find mutually acceptable solutions”.