Striking CLOGSAG members will not be paid — Haruna Iddrisu
Civil servants who continue with the strike declared by the Civil and Local Government Staff Association, Ghana (CLOGSAG) will forfeit their salaries for August, the Minister of Employment and Labour Relations, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, has warned.
Advertisement
Consequently, starting from today, August 9, 2016, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service (OHCS) will conduct a head count to identify unproductive civil servants who have embarked on the illegal strike.
At a press briefing in Accra yesterday, Mr Iddrisu said: “While the government respects the right of workers to manifest by way of a strike, we are unable to compensate for unproductive work and, accordingly, the Head of the Civil Service and the Head of the Local Government Service have been instructed to conduct roll calls, as the strike has been declared illegal by the National Labour Commission (NLC).
“We expect the workers to return to work or forfeit their August salaries, as they will be deemed to have abandoned post.”
Status
Briefing journalists on the status of the interim market premium (IMP) and the market premium, Mr Iddrisu said there would be a new market premium (MP) policy in January 2017 based on the assessment and evaluation undertaken by a committee working together with the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC).
A market premium is monetary incentive paid to attract and retain critical skills in short supply within the economy. The premium is to bring the salaries of people with skills in short supply close to or equal with the actual market value of such skills.
The committee has also been tasked to ensure the smooth transition from the IMP to the institution of an MP regime for employees identified as deserving of the allowance.
The sub-committee, according to the minister, had invited representation from CLOGSAG but the association had not appeared before it.
He said the committee was still consulting with various stakeholders and urged CLOGSAG to take advantage and work with it for CLOGSAG’s representation to be brought on board.
Redress
The minister said while CLOGSAG had made its case eloquently, it could not hold all to ransom and embark on “an action in perpetuity”.
He encouraged the association to take its grievances to the Grievance, Negotiations and Collective Bargaining Unit of the FWSC for redress.
He said the grievances would be examined on merit and on the basis of reports issued during the tenure of former ministers of Employment, Mr E. T. Mensah and Nii Armah Ashietey.
Mr Iddrisu said it was important for CLOGSAG to return to the negotiating table.
“The conflict position will not benefit workers, as the strike is undermining the effective and efficient delivery of public goods and services, but we cannot reward unproductive service,” he maintained.
The minister said an IMP had not been budgeted for in the 2016 budget, making it difficult for the government to accommodate such compensations that would put a strain on the economy.
But he stressed that the government was open to dialogue with CLOGSAG to arrive at an understanding.
Negotiations
The minister also reported that negotiations on the National Daily Minimum Wage (NDMW) and the base pay for the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS) had advanced but not concluded.
He promised, however, that a new NDMW and a base pay for the SSSS would be announced before the presentation of the budget in the last quarter of the year.
Context
CLOGSAG, in a July 4, 2016 press release, raised issues with a draft report on the transition from an IMP to an MP discussed at a meeting on May 26, 2016.
It said the draft report had stated that members of the committee in charge of the transition had focused on the health and educational sectors in determining the skills that qualify for market premium.
It said the focus on those sectors was unjustifiable and asked for an extension of the IMP to CLOGSAG members from the date of the implementation of the SSSS in January 2010 pending the resolution of the grievances the association had.
It followed up the press release with the mobilisation of members for an indefinite strike, starting from July 27, 2016.
On August 4, 2016, the NLC issued a statement directing CLOGSAG to call off its strike, since it was illegal.
The commission said CLOGSAG failed to notify the NLC of its strike and that was in contravention of Section 159 of the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651).
