The Government and Hospitals Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA) has said it is unaware of any suit from the National Labour Commission (NLC) praying it to call off its strike, according to the GHOSPA General Secretary, Emmanuel Owusu Owiafe.
This is despite the NLC confirming to Citi News it had filed a suit at the Labour Division of the High Court, seeking to compel striking members of the Government and Hospitals Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA), to call off their strike
[contextly_sidebar id=”Lj2IYieqUkbf3u3Y1ImxOJlAFSwj4MQh”]“GHOSPA has not received the suit yet. We also heard it on air and as at now that I am speaking, we have not received a suit,” Mr. Owiafe said in a Citi News interview.
Mr. Owiafe said his association would “study it appropriately and then we will let our legal team respond to it appropriately,” when it receives the suit.
He also pointed out that there was no illegality in GHOSPA’s protest noting that “we did serve notice to the National Labor Commission. From our end, we don’t think any illegal process was initiated.”
Mr. Owiafe retorted that the NLC would have done well to instead initiate legal processes “to ensure that the Fair wages and Salaries Commission obey its own rulings.”
Background
GHOSPA started an indefinite strike on Monday to push for changes to their market premiums.
The association said it was forced to resort to a strike over the breakdown of negotiations with government, spanning six years, over its grade structure and placement in public health facilities.
The pharmacists have lamented discrepancies in its interim market premiums claiming that the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, has placed pharmacists working in university hospitals on a premium of 1.14, whilst the pharmacists working in the Ghana Health Service are on a premium of 0.58.
Thought the NLC has not described this strike as illegal, it has said GHOSPA’s actions are not in the interest of potential patrons hence its decision to resort to the law courts.
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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana