The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has issued a stark warning that Ghana’s workforce cannot support any national economic reset without immediate reforms to address plunge wages, worsening working conditions, and systemic inequalities.
Speaking at the May Day celebrations at Black Star Square, TUC Chairman Bernard Owusu delivered a scathing assessment of workers’ plight under the current administration.
“Our pay and working conditions are deteriorating. The wage situation has worsened since you were last in government,” Owusu declared, directly addressing President John Mahama, who attended the event.
Owusu highlighted a severe decline in real wages over the past four years, exacerbated by inflation and a widening gap between salaries and living costs.
He explained that wages are now far lower compared to the rising cost of living, with inflation over the past four years leading to a significant decline in real wages. Wage inequality, he added, has increased across both the public and private sectors.
“The national pension system isn’t working for workers. We are confronted with low pensions and inequalities in pensions.
“The minimum monthly pension is GH¢396.58, while the highest is GH¢21,792.73. This is not the outcome workers envisaged under the three-tier workers’ scheme,” the chairman complained.
Workers face retaliation for unionizing, with threats of dismissal becoming increasingly common. Owusu specifically cited unresolved disputes involving workers at Asogli, who remain unemployed due to labor conflicts.
Our brothers from Asogli are still at home. We ask that the president bring our brothers back to work,” he appealed
The TUC chairman expressed concern over recent mass terminations in the public sector, recalling that similar actions under the previous administration led to painful consequences for many workers.
He said “As we gather under a gov’t committed to resetting governance and restoring hope, it is only fitting that we chart a new course, one that refrains from repeating past mistakes”.
The TUC Chairman called for amnesty for all public sector workers affected by recent terminations and emphasised that a genuine reset must focus on fairness, inclusion, and protection for workers.
“A genuine reset must be marked by passion, inclusion, and fairness,”Owusu noted.
Source : www.kumasimail.com /Kwadwo Owusu
