Government has described the decision by various labour groups to embark on an indefinite strike as “unlawful” and “unnecessary”.
About eight Ghanaian labour unions have served notice they will embark on an indefinite strike on Tuesday, October 22, to protest government’s failure to pay public sector workers their tier two pension funds into a private account.
The eight unions are made up of the Coalition of Concerned Teachers, Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Public and Health Service Workers Union and the Ghana Registered Nurses Association.
The rest are the Government Hospital Pharmacists Association, Ghana Medical Association (GMA) and the Civil and Local Government Staff Association (CLOGSAG).
Speaking on Eyewitness News, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Haruna Iddrisu. said the unions declined participation in a meeting called by government to address their[labour unions] grievances.
He added that the groups have unilaterally decided to go ahead with their intended strike.
[contextly_sidebar id=”kCywshVRk7SiD3xQoLRRUoD7Ktitnqvw”]He said their decision is completely unlawful since it contravenes the Labour Act.
“ The action offends Act 651.. In the last meeting at the Ministry of Employment I raised this issue and asked that we do a further dialogue and consultation which was to continue today so one is surprised that they will go and have a press conference and declare a strike,”the Minister lamented.
Haruna Iddrisu clarified that the pension funds of the various labour unions are “safe and secure”, adding that government had delayed the payment of the outstanding funds because it was seeking to protect it against any future risks.
“ We have over 440 million with the Bank of Ghana yet to be disbursed. It is just the structure and the mechanism that we disagree…the President has a duty and responsibility to protect the fund against any risks.We have seen it happen in Scandinavia where employees’ schemes have collapsed and the state has been called in,”he stated
The Minister therefore suggested that the various labour unions resolve their grievances through dialogue rather than resorting to an industrial action.
By: Marian Efe Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana