Labour unrest; Govt to find lasting solution

President John Dramani Mahama Sunday gave an assurance that the government would take the necessary steps to address the concerns of workers to bring a lasting solution to industrial unrest in the country.

He particularly expressed worry over the doctors’ strike and said the repercussions of the strike could not be replaced even after their grievances had been met and the strike was over.

Speaking at the 56th National Prayer and Thanksgiving Service at the Black Star Square in Accra, President Mahama said he had directed the relevant agencies to urgently deal with the matters affecting the doctors.

The country has witnessed industrial unrest in recent times. Members of National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) went on strike for a while before calling off their action following an intervention by the President.

The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) and the Government Hospital Pharmacists Association have indicated that they will embark on a strike from Monday.

President Mahama said the proposed meeting between the government and organised labour would deal with the sticky points between state agencies and workers, as well as the salaries of Article 71 office holders.

He said the government was ready to hold the meeting with organised labour to review the implementation of the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP) and have a dispassionate discussion on the way forward.

He said the meeting would also fast-track the Constitutional Review Commission’s recommendation “to bring Article 71 salaries on the same plane as the Single Spine Salary Structure”.

“It is my hope that the conference will bring all of us on the same wavelength in terms of remuneration and emoluments and bring a lasting solution to the industrial unrest we are faced with,” he said.

President Mahama expressed worry that just when the issues of NAGRAT, GNAT and TEWU were being resolved, medical doctors, pharmacists and nurses had also indicated their intention to embark on strike.

He said he was in Nigeria arranging for Ghana to get regular supply of gas from the West Africa Gas Pipeline to power the country’s thermal plants and crude oil to feed the country’s refinery when he learnt of doctors’ intention to go on strike.

“The announcement by medical doctors to begin a strike is worrisome because of the everlasting and irreplaceable effects such actions can have on the lives of our people.

“Lives once lost cannot be replaced, even after the issues of the strike are resolved,” the President said.

The service, which was characterised by song ministrations, led by the Charismatic Mass Choir, and the reading of Scriptures, was to thank God for blessing the country with peace and development and ask for His continuous blessings for the nation.

Prayers were said for national welfare, development and progress, national security and stability and for the arms of government by the clergy.

It was held on the theme: “...The people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits”.

Among the dignitaries who graced the service were the Vice-President, Mr Kwesi Amissah-Arthur; the Speaker of Parliament, Mr Edward Doe Adjaho; the Chief Justice, Mrs Justice Georgina Theodora Wood; ministers of state and Members of Parliament.

Mrs Wood did the first Scripture reading from the Book of Philippians 4:4-7, while Mr Adjaho read the second from 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18.

The Founder and Leader of the Lighthouse Chapel International, Bishop Dag Heward-Mills, led a prayer on national security and stability.

Story: Musah Yahaya Jafaru