Disgruntled 2013/14 Dislocated Workers Group of AngloGold Ashanti Ghana Limited, Obuasi Mine, is demanding their unpaid special compensation from the former employer with immediate effect.
Few days ago the group held a press conference in Accra to press home for their financial package.
The group’s spokesperson, Alex Frimpong, said its members, numbering over 4,000, are owed between US$60,000 and US$125,000, based on the number of years one worked with the mining firm.
He said “We requested some labour consultants to help us engage AngloGold Ashanti to amicably resolve the issues so that we can receive our special compensation pay. However, AngloGold Ashanti in a letter to our consultants said they were not aware of any retrenchment carried out by AngloGold Ashanti in 2013.
“This denial was shocking because it was common knowledge and a fact, that retrenchment started from September, 2013, so what was AngloGold up to?”
He added “We ask AngloGold if they are aware that they started their unprecedented retrenchment from September 2013. We are not worried if the company has no answer because there is incontrovertible evidence that AngloGold issued retrenchment letters it now denies.”
To the group, they were encouraged by the views of Yaw Baah, TUC Secretary General, at the 2018 May Day parade in Kumasi, stating that the new AngloGold employment arrangement was not proper and was only aimed at maximizing profit for the company.
The spokesperson and his colleagues, clad in red bands, questioned what the TUC boss’ actions were after identifying the anomaly, and have consequently demanded concrete actions from the TUC which has benefitted from the former AngloGold workers dues for many years.
“Our consultants in June, 2019, requested that the CEO of AngloGold in South Africa, should intervene and have our monies paid to us but as of today our consultants have not received any response nor has receipts of our letter been acknowledged,” said Frimpong.
He mentioned that the group has instructed its consultants to engage the appropriate authority and have the matter settled amicably through an appropriate audit and verification.
“When they laid us off, they were supposed to give us special compensation but up till now, we have not received anything…That is why we have come here to stage a press.”
Last July, the group embarked on a massive protest to push for their financial reward at the Gold House in Accra.