Court of Appeal Suspends Cabinet Decision to Reduce Retirement Age of Government Nurses to 60

In a recent development, the Court of Appeal has issued an interim order suspending the Cabinet of Ministers’ decision to reduce the mandatory retirement age of government nurses to 60 years. The Appellate Court bench, headed by Justice Nissanka Bandula Karunaratne and Justice A. Marikkar, issued the order after considering petitions filed by a group, including the Public Service United Nurses’ Union, claiming that the decision was unlawful.

The petitioners argued that nurses are capable of continuing their employment until the age of 63, and the recent decision taken by the Cabinet of Ministers is unjust. The Court of Appeal, after considering the presented facts, issued an interim order, stating that it will remain in force until the hearing of the petition is concluded.

The petition named several respondents, including Minister of Public Administration Dinesh Gunawardena, the Secretary of the Public Administration Ministry, members of the Cabinet of Ministers, the President’s Secretary, and the Attorney General. The Court’s order implies that until the hearing of the petition, the mandatory retirement age for government nurses will remain at 63.