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Sri Lanka's apparel workers pay rises, but living wage gap persists

28 Dec '25
5 min read
Sri Lanka's apparel workers pay rises, but living wage gap persists
Pic: Leon Concept/Shutterstock

Insights

  • Sri Lanka's recent apparel wage hikes have raised nominal pay, but currency depreciation has limited real gains.
  • While manufacturers benefit from lower dollar-denominated labour costs, workers continue to face a wide gap between minimum wages and living costs, highlighting persistent structural pressures in a sector central to the country's export economy.

Under the National Minimum Wage of Workers Amendment Act No ** of ****, the monthly minimum wage for private sector employees, including garment workers, was raised to LKR **,*** (~$**.**) from April ****, with a further increase to LKR **,*** (~$**) scheduled from January *, ****.

Minimum wage framework in apparel sector

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