Ghana Revenue Authority Workers Union picks executive

The executive are, Rev. Joseph Osei-Yeboah, Chairman; Mr Emmanuel Tetteh, First Vice Chairman; Prince Alhassan Seidu, Second Vice Chairman and Mr Patrick Amehoe, Secretary.

The rest are, Mr Seidu Ibrahim, Assistant Secretary; Mr Boniface Owusu, Financial Secretary; Mrs Edem Onyekuba, Treasurer and Mr Godwin Yuiah, Welfare Officer.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Gamey and Gamey Group, Mr Austin Akufo Gamey, who delivered the inaugural address, said the new trend in ensuring organisational effectiveness is for management and labour to co-operate.

He said when employers, employees and trade unions work together in a relationship of mutual trust, the benefits are enormous.

Mr Gamey explained that under such circumstances, difficulties can be discussed and sorted out before they become problems, with the accompanying results of higher productivity and profitability and greater rewards for the workforce.

According to Mr Gamey, some additional benefits of enterprise-based unions such as GRAWU include its influence on management at an early stage in decision-making process through consultation on employment and other issues as well as the almost non existence of workers resort to industrial action.

Mr Gamey said this kind of serene environment can be attained, “If the leadership of the unions educate themselves to derive the needed benefits. Leaders must be disciplined, honest, gentle and procure for themselves the needed honour that a leader needs.”

He encouraged the leadership of the union, “to avoid power play with management and exhibit higher quality discipline to management as well as its members. In the absence of these, one has no role to be a leader.”

The Head of Communications and Public Affairs of the GRA, Assistant Commissioner Annie Anipa, who deputised for the Commissioner General of the GRA, on behalf of the management, appealed for co-operation between the two unions — GRAWU and PSWU — to facilitate the process of consensus building.

She also entreated the two unions to avoid conflict at the workplace, because, “GRA’s role of revenue mobilisation is critical and must not be derailed.  You must understand the role you have to play within the GRA.”

The Chief Labour Officer, Mrs Elizabeth Hagan, who traced the history of trade unionism admonished the union leadership to watch their utterances and actions that have political connotations.

The interim Chairman of GRAWU, Rev.  Oduro-Yeboah, said the union leadership has a vital role to play to ensure job security and empower workers to get the information they needed.

A former Secretary General of the Trades Union Congress, Mr Christian Appiah-Agyei, said workers unions take legitimacy from the law and it is not for existing unions to show hostility to new unions and called for dialogue when such conflicts come up.