The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has announced that it will begin an indefinite strike on July 10, 2023, to demand the reinstatement of three local union leaders who were dismissed by Sunon Asogli Power Limited.
Addressing journalists in Accra on June 26, Secretary General of the TUC, Dr. Yaw Baah, that the union leaders were terminated after joining the Ghana Mine Workers Union, which operates under the umbrella of the Trades Union Congress (TUC). He revealed that attempts to resolve the situation, and efforts to address the situation have been unsuccessful, hence their action.
“… Organized Labour leaders have met, and our decision is very clear, all union members in this country, on July 10, if our three brothers have not been reinstated, no worker will go to work on July 10. That is very simple and clear, I want to repeat, on Monday, July 10, all workers of Ghana are going to stay at home, if our brothers are not reinstated.”
Dr Yaw Baah
Dr Baah stated that the union met sometime back to deliberate on the violation of workers’ rights by Sunon Asogli. However, he stated that three of the union members have been sacked.
“On June 1, we met here, and we gave a deadline of June 26, for them to be reinstated. As of now, our friends are still home. We have engaged with Minister for Employment and Labour Relations, government officials, stakeholders, but they are still home. Today Organized Labour has made a decision that we will not allow this to go on. If our government will sit down for union leaders to be treated this way, we cannot sit down and do nothing.”
Dr Yaw Baah
Public service workers cautioned not to work
Furthermore, Dr. Baah cautioned that both civil and public service workers as well as commercial drivers will also not work on the scheduled strike date.
“Workers both in public and civil service, Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) will stay at home, no vehicles will move on July 10 in this country. This is the decision we have made, I think this is clear and simple, comrades.
Dr Yaw Baah
Earlier this month, Organized Labour issued a two-week ultimatum demanding the reinstatement of three of their local union leaders whose appointments have allegedly been terminated by Sunon Asogli Ghana Limited.
Despite the efforts of the TUC, which has taken various measures to resolve the situation and secure the reinstatement of the workers, these attempts have so far been unsuccessful.
Following a closed-door meeting with the Minister of Labour Relations, Ignatius Baffour-Awuah, Dr. Yaw Baah, the Secretary General of the TUC, stated that Organized Labour is steadfast in its demands and will not relent in its pursuit of justice.
On his part, Executive Secretary of CLOGSAG, Dr. Isaac Bampoe-Addo, appealed to the Paramount Chief of the Asogli State, Togbe Afede XVI to act swiftly to avert the industrial action. He noted that the location of Asogli Power Plant, is close to Togbe Afede’s jurisdiction and that more than 50% of his constituents are working there.
The ultimatum came amid growing tensions between Organized Labour and Sunon Asogli Ghana Limited. In recent months, there have been a number of strikes and protests by workers at the company, who are demanding better pay and working conditions.
The situation is being closely monitored by the government, which is keen to avoid a wider industrial dispute. However, stakeholders are unsure whether Sunon Asogli Ghana Limited will comply with the ultimatum issued by Organized Labour.
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