Top UK retailer shuts Sri Lanka plant, triggers protest

Colombo: British fashion retailer Next has abruptly shut one of its three factories in Sri Lanka, sacking around 1,400 workers and sparking protests o...

Colombo: British fashion retailer Next has abruptly shut one of its three factories in Sri Lanka, sacking around 1,400 workers and sparking protests on Wednesday.

The Next factory at the island's Katunayake Free Trade Zone, just outside the capital Colombo, announced its immediate closure on Tuesday and promised severance deals to 1,416 workers made redundant overnight.

David Reay, director of manufacturing at Next, said the plant had been unprofitable for several years and that he had no alternative but to close it.

"At the heart of this decision is the increasingly high operating cost of the Katunayake manufacturing plant," Reay said in a statement, adding the company will continue to operate two other factories on the island.

A powerful trade union said over 800 of its members were out of work as a result of the sudden closure, and it would seek legal redress to secure their jobs.