This is the indication from the NLC as it hopes that its new Commission would have been formed by then.

Citi Business News has been speaking to some analysts who believe a further delay will adversely impact labour front.

Information available to Citi Business News indicates that the tenure of the past Commission ended in October last year.

The Commission is among others expected to adjudicate all labour cases brought before it by affected parties.

Per the regulations guiding its operations, the Commission cannot sit on any case if it falls short of its seven member composition.

The General Secretary of the Industrial and Commercial Workers’ Union (ICU), Solomon Kotei in an earlier interview lamented the backlog of activities due to the non existence of a Commission.

“Labour, employers have been able to send their proposed commissioners but nothing has happened as of now. So from last year till date, it is only reconciliatory works that is being done at the Commission. There are neither the usual mediators nor arbitrators on their job and this is not very healthy because there is pile up,” he stated.

The Executive Secretary of the NLC, Vincent Ofosu Asamoah couldn’t agree more.

He narrated the increased work schedules as his outfit awaits the approval of its nomination from the Presidency.

“We used to have a backlog of cases but we are dealing with them…that is what we want to look at and if there had been delays in the past, we wouldn’t want that to be repeated in 2018.”

Labour Analyst Austin Gammey also believes the continuous delay may not augur well for anticipated labour issues in the interim though he admits to some alternative resolution mechanisms.

He therefore urged that the process is expedited to get all representatives at work.

“The Secretariat is doing their best but I think that the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations may have to bring this to the attention of the Presidential staffers especially the Chief of Staff so that they can arrange for the President to commission them into office,” he stated.

Meanwhile the Executive Secretary for the NLC, Ofosu Asamoah is optimistic the Commission should be operating by the end of this month barring any unforeseen circumstances.

“We should be getting the commission set any moment from now; it was my expectation that this has been completed by now. When it comes to the nomination of government’s representatives, the President refers the nomination to the Council of State for advice and that is where I think has led to the delays. But I do not see why we should be looking at end of January and beyond,” he assured.

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By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana

The post NLC to get new Commission by February 2018 appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

It has since given the government a 5-month ultimatum to address the matter.

[contextly_sidebar id=”GB7B4assdEnYvApIivXiyddkCDa80FTy”]Doctors across the country in 2015 embarked on a nationwide strike that lasted a month, to demand negotiated and signed conditions of service documents.

The strike was called off following assurances their concerns were being addressed.

Several months after, the market premium is yet to be completed amidst reminders and threats from the Medical Association.

The Association, however says if the government does not fully implement the market premium by April 2018, it will take action.

Speaking the 59th annual and scientific meeting in Kumasi, newly elected President of the GMA, Dr. Frank Ankobeah, says members will ensure all outstanding issues are resolved.

“In the ruling of the National Labour Commission (NLC) in a compulsory arbitration in November 2011, the market premium was a percentage of the basic salary of the doctors. The above ruling was implemented for only a year, after which the government unilaterally decided to make it a fixed figure contrary to the ruling of the NLC. The GMA therefore decides that if all the issues of full implementation of conditions of service and market premiums together with the related matters of conversion difference and reduced pensions are not dealt with by the government immediately, the GMA by 1800 GMT April 30, 2018, will begin a series of activities that will definitely affect the current industrial climate,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Medical Association and 11 other labour unions are calling on the government to transfer their pension contributions spanning 2010 to 2016, to their custodian banks rather than being kept in their temporary pensions account where it accrues no interest.

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By: Jonas Nyabor & Hafiz Tijani/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post GMA threatens gov’t over market premiums appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

CETAG began a nationwide strike on Thursday over the non-payment of year-long salary arrears owed them.

[contextly_sidebar id=”pZz9XOetLLrx0LHAeyubTxYEPbI1yLXC”]In an interview with Citi News however, the Executive Secretary of the National Labour Commission, Ofosu Asamoah, asked the lecturers to return to work whilst the commission strives to bring finality to their concerns.

“We plead with members of CETAG to reconsider their decision because we are working on it…,” Mr. Asamoah pleaded.

The General Secretary of CETAG, Prince Obeng-Himah, however told Citi News they won’t return to the lecture halls until their concerns are addressed.

“As far as the laws of the land are concerned, we are at the end of it and we believe that a strike is the last resort and that is what we will do. We are saying that we will stay home till the money is paid to our members.”

CETAG declared a nationwide strike in protest of unpaid salaries after a caution to government.

The teachers had threatened to down their tools if the government failed to pay salary arrears owed its members since October 2016.

CETAG had lamented that, despite a directive by the National Labour Commission (NLC), asking the Ministry of Finance to pay the arrears within two weeks, they are yet to be paid.

According to them, per the migration of the tertiary statuses of the Colleges of Education following the passage of the Colleges of Education Act 847 in 2012, the teachers were expected to be paid the salary difference between their previous salary levels and the new salaries from January to September 2016.

CETAG has said that, until the arrears are paid, they are withdrawing their services from the 38 colleges across the country.

A statement signed by the National Secretary of the Association, Prince Obeng-Himah, and cited by citifmonline.com, said: “On the basis of this development, leadership has decided that members should withdraw our services in all the thirty-eight public colleges of education till such a time that the arrears are fully paid to members, having duly consulted all Local and Zonal branches of the Association on the matter”

The statement directed all members to wear red bands as a mark of the protest.

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post NLC begs Colleges of Education tutors to call off strike appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The President Akufo Addo has appointed a new Executive Secretary of the NLC, Mr. Ofosu Asamoah.

He replaces Mr. Charles Adongo Bawa Duah who was appointed by former President John Mahama in 2016.

But the ICU contends that the process of replacing Mr. Charles Bawa Duah with Mr. Ofosu Asamoah without recourse to laid down procedure is likely to impact negatively on labour issues.

According to the General Secretary of the ICU, Solomon Kotei, the selection of the Executive Secretary must be conducted in a transparent manner so as not to infringe on the rights of all stakeholders.

“This is the right for the Public Services Commission; the Commissioners are also appointed by the tripartite committee comprising government, labour and employers association…if with the Executive powers of the President they want to come and usurp the power of the Public Services Commission, what we are advising is that the position should be vacant then they can do that,” he remarked.

Mr. Kotei added,“Even so, that person must go through the right procedure and that is what we are saying.”

Meanwhile the ICU has served notice it will intensify their pressure should their appeals go unattended to.

The General Secretary of the Union would not readily disclose the plan of action than to mention of consensus among the various labour fronts.

“The momentum is gathering; organised labour is putting itself together and probably a stronger position and voice may be heard than what ICU has done,” he asserted.

Mr. Charles Adongo Bawa Duah assumed office after Dr. Bernice Welbeck who served as Acting Executive Secretary of the NLC for about three years.

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By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana

The post ICU pressurizes gov’t over new NLC boss’ appointment appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The NLC Executive Secretary, Adongo Bawa Duah, explained to Citi News that the leadership of JUSSAG did not pursue all the possible avenues at the commission with respect to their grievances.

[contextly_sidebar id=”Cwzc5zd23cGjri5Y3ANSdUlKIAIG5Rvh”]”The leaders of JUSSAG did not exhaust the procedures at the national labour commission to ensure that a permanent and enforceable decision was reached on their allowances and that is why this matter is recurring. If they had appeared before the National Labour Commission for its dispute to be adjudicated upon, then the commission will then have enforced its orders against government, but this did not happen,” Mr. Buah said.

The NLC Executive Secretary reminded that “it is the National Labour Commission which can reach a binding a decision with regards to their [JUSSAG’s] disputes with government.”

“The signing of a memorandum of understanding with government agencies does not resolve the matter permanently because they are not judicial documents,” he added.

Background

JUSSAG has served notice it would resort to a strike to claim outstanding allowances should the government fail to clear outstanding arrears this month.

In a letter signed by the JUSSAG President, Alex Nartey, and addressed to the Judicial Secretary, the Association said its members are economically constrained as a result of government’s failure to pay the allowances.

The government has however indicated its intent to sit down with the various stakeholders of the Judicial Service JUSSAG to resolve issues regarding the allowances.

Minister for Employment and Labour Relations, Ignatius Baffour Awuah said the stakeholders meeting will ensure that issues regarding the payment of allowances are addressed amicably.

JUSSAG’s last strike came in April 2016, when it acted on its displeasure over delays in implementing a new salary structure; approved for them by the Judicial Council, but the association later suspended the strike after receiving assurances from Mahama government.

The association held that the government had failed to correct the anomalies that existed in their pay structure.

In October 2016, it gave the government until the end of that month to correct the perceived anomalies identified in its renegotiated pay structure or face a strike.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post JUSSAG partly to blame for allowance dispute – Labour Commission appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Mr. Adongo Bawaduah contested parliamentary primaries in the Bongo Constituency on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC); an action they say is against the public service act.

The workers, clad in red, are also against the dismissal of two of their colleagues and demanded their immediate reinstatement.

Speaking to Citi News, the Senior Industrial Relations Officer at the Commission, Eric Omane Yeboah, said Mr. Bawaduah among other things caused the transfers and postings of staff without due process.

“This man who claims he is a public servant is the very individual who contested the NDC primaries and lost at Bongo constituency. Public servants are non-partisan therefore once his government loses power, he has no business running the affairs of National Labour Commission, that is all. The workers have locked the doors in solidarity with their employees who have been sacked, and they want their colleagues to be reinstated, and make sure that the conditions of service are improved for the general welfare of employees of the National Labour Commission.”

“Strangely enough, the National Labour Commission does not have a forum to deal with this case…And so I believe that with this communication the authorities will hear, and we are willing to sit down to make sure our grievances are resolved.”

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By: Marian Ansah & Zoke Abu Baidoo/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post NLC staff demand removal of Executive Secretary appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The direction follows a meeting the Commission had on Wednesday with the Minister of Health, representatives of the nurses and authorities of the hospital.

[contextly_sidebar id=”1bamT6kR6cmK3WpgFXIFo1Whrv1neuEs”]The psychiatric nurses on Monday embarked on an indefinite strike, claiming that work at the facility posed serious risk to them.

They lamented that, the lack of some logistics and materials at the hospital  is making it difficult for them to discharge their duties effectively, hence their decision to lay down their tools.

But the Executive Secretary of the Commission, Charles Adongo Bawaduah, said the nurses breached the labour laws by failing to notify the NLC before embarking on the strike.

The Commission has therefore directed the Ministry of Health to devise immediate solutions by providing the nurses with logistics, drugs and  other relevant tools.

It further added that the Accra Psychiatric Hospital will settle all medical bills of members of the psychiatric nurses who in the course of duties have suffered attacks from patients.

Health Ministry begs Nurses to return to work 

The Ministry of Health earlier urged striking nurses of the psychiatric hospital to call off their strike as it works to address their concerns.

According to the Ministry, some GH¢1 billion will soon be disbursed by the Ministry of Finance for the procurement of some needed logistics for the facility.

“The finance ministry is releasing some money to us. They’ve dealt with the human right aspect of it. So moving forward, we are asking them to go back to work while we deal with the issue,”Tony Goodman, the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health told Citi News.

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By: Marian Ansah & Zoe Abu Baidoo/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah

The post NLC orders psychiatric nurses to return to work appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In a statement signed by its Chief Executive Officer, Anthony K Ameka, the Chamber of Pharmacy Ghana, said that the breakdown in negotiations comes at a point when the services of pharmacists are needed critically.

“The Chamber of Pharmacy Ghana sees the breakdown in  negotiations between the parties as most unfortunate, especially at the time when the services of one of the most critical essential service provider (The Pharmacists) are needed to advance our national health goals.”

The chamber has therefore asked government and all stakeholders involved to address the concerns of GHOSPA in order to save lives.

“The Chamber of Pharmacy Ghana is, therefore, appealing to the Government and its negotiation team, the national leadership of GHOSPA and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) to address these issues urgently and immediately. This is critical to save the lives of Ghanaians.”

“We are all appealing to members of the Government and Hospital Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA) to consider their patients and cooperate for a swift resolution. To save lives and prevent the obvious unintended consequences of the strike action, we urge the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, The Ministry for Employment and Labour Relations and the Government and Hospital Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA to come together with a concrete deal to halt the strike action.”

The chamber also called on the Ministry of Health “to come up with strategies to refocus its policies and actions to forestall future strike actions within the sector to ensure continuous provision of quality, accessible, affordable and equitable health services for all Ghanaians, to better respond to emerging new diseases both nationally and internationally.”

The Chamber of Pharmacy Ghana, inaugurated in 2013, is a platform that seeks to promote, protect, pursue and advocate the collective interests of patients, its members, the pharmaceutical industry and the state.

GHOSPA members on strike

Members of the Government and Hospitals Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA) declared on Monday, September 5, that they were commencing an indefinite strike to press home demands for changes to their market premiums.

According to the association, the decision to go on strike was due to the continuous breakdown of negotiations with the government over its grade structure and placement in public health facilities.

Two days into the strike, the National Labour Commission filed  a suit at the Labour Division of the High Court, seeking to compel striking pharmacists to call off their strike.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health has ordered heads of pharmacy units in public health institutions to remain at post to ensure that the pharmacies are in operation.

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By: Jeffrey Owuraku Sarpong/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Address GHOSPA’s concerns now – Chamber of Pharmacy Ghana appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In 2013, the Ghana health service reported an alarming figure of seven hundred and fifty thousand pregnancy cases of girls between ages fifteen (15) and nineteen (19).

The Central Region from 1993 remained the region with the highest figures of pregnant teenagers until 2013 when the Upper eEst Region took over.

This documentary tells the story of the teenagers of Gomoa Akotsi in the Central Region of Ghana. The producer/narrator is an indigent of the village. Roberta Abbeyquaye grew up with the teenage mothers in this documentary and managed to rise through the educational ladder to the university.

She tells the story based on her deep knowledge of the community and her experiences as an indigent with the hope that action will be taken to ensure the children in Gomoa Akotsi get the help they need to secure their future.

The 97.3 Citi FM Hold My Hand Documentary Series is proudly sponsored by STAR GHANA.

The post Motherhood in Childhood – How teenagers have become mothers appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.