Leadership of the Ghana Mineworkers’ Union of Trades Union Congress (TUC) has criticized the ruling of the High Court in the case involving aggrieved mineworkers and management of Goldfields Company Limited.
A statement issued and signed by the General Secretary of the Mineworkers’ Union, Prince William Ankrah said, “The judge handling the case, Her Ladyship Lorrinda Owusu at the High Court (Labour Division) gave her ruling on the matter on March 2, 2018 much to the disappointment of the Union.”
According to the statement, “The judge, in her ruling, prioritized financial conveniences over legal rights of our members.
“We respect the decision but we disagree with it. We have since filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal. We have also filed an application for stay of execution pending appeal,” it added.
Ghana Mineworkers’ Union and Gold Fields Ghana Limited have since November been in dispute over the legitimacy of the company to adopt contract mining instead of the current owner mining model.
About 2,150 workers, according to the Union, would be adversely affected as a result of the move.
“Following the company’s boisterous posturing and intransigent stance on the matter, the union was pushed to file a suit on the matter in the Labour Court Division of the High Court of Ghana praying the court for interlocutory injunction to restrain the company from carrying out its intentions and the matter has since been pending before the court awaiting a determination,” the statement indicated.
“As the parties continued to wait for the outcome of the court case, the company’s corporate office in Johannesburg, South Africa released a press statement on its global operations, including its Ghana’s operation and typical of their character, lied again to the stakeholders and the market. As a responsible union and mindful of the debilitating impact of false information and facts misrepresentation, we are forced to set the records straight again on the issues. “
By Melvin Tarlue