Bright Wireko-Brobbey
DEPUTY Minister of Employment and Labour Relations, Bright Wireko-Brobbey, says public sector workers will be given their due for government to avoid strikes in 2020 which is a year of growth acceleration.
He has therefore appealed to unions to table their grievances at the Ministry for the sector Minister to facilitate engagements between them and their respective Ministries for redress.
Addressing the 12th Quadrennial National Delegates’ Conference and 60th anniversary celebration of the Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) in Kumasi, the Deputy Minister said the welfare of the labour force remained a priority of the NPP government led by President Akufo-Addo.
According to him, government cherished the significance of the labour force, which plays a constructive role in the country’s development.
“We have gone past military regimes where governments were destabilized by guns. In the democratic dispensation, one needs to be watchful of the labour force because when they agitate, they destabilize the industrial atmosphere, and government cannot get the peace of mind to operate,” he indicated.
Mr Wireko-Brobbey stated that it had been the President’s resolve to be present at every occasion of labour he is expected to do so, adding that Nana Akufo-Addo, since assumption of office in 2016, had always been physically present in all May Day celebrations.
The Deputy Minister again assured TEWU members of his Ministry’s preparedness to assist in resolving all lingering issues and concerns, especially the one relating the ratio of sharing ‘intervention money’ for teaching and non-teaching staff at Senior High Schools (SHSs).
TEWU Chairman, Peter K. Lumor had called on government to review the 80:20 percentage ratios for disbursement of money for teachers and non-teaching staff respectively at the second cycle schools.
He argued that the introduction of Free Senior High School and Double Track system has increased their burden without corresponding compensation.
According to him, government, in addition, is again paying them only 20 percent of overtime work done, and described the development as demoralizing for TEWU members.
In response, Mr Wireko-Brobbey said the issues of critical support, insurance concerns, and packages for TEWU members would all be addressed by the respective Ministries with the Employment and Labour Relations Ministry as facilitator.
He also called on TEWU members to demonstrate professionalism as they carry out their activities, noting that he has no doubt that the union had embraced the slogan of the United Nation’s agenda 2030 of the Sustainable Development Goal of living no one behind in contributing to the development of equitable, inclusive and quality education delivery in Ghana.
“This is in conformity with the government vision of ensuring quality human capital, skills development through various government interventions, including FSHS, School Feeding Programme, decentralization of scholarship schemes that we have recently introduced.”
From Ernest Kofi Adu, Kumasi