By Nicholas Osei-Wusu
The Public Services Workers’ Union, PSWU says Managers of some workers’ Pension Funds have failed to disburse money due contributors whose Tier Three Pension contributions have matured.
This failure, according to the PSWU, is because the government has rolled over its commitment to the affected Pension Funds.
The PSWU suspects that the gesture by the government is linked to the ongoing Domestic Debt Exchange Programme, even though Government and Organized Labour have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to leave out entirely workers’ pensions under the programme.
The Deputy General Secretary of the PSWU, John Sampah, who raised the alarm in Kumasi, noted that labour is investigating the matter but warned that, if its suspicion turns out to be a breach of the MOU, workers will use every force to address the decision.
The Deputy General Secretary of the PSWU, John Sampah, suspected government of having breached its MOU with organised labour that exempts all workers’ Pension Funds from the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP), causing some of the Fund Managers to default in paying matured pensions to their member contributors.
The PSWU Deputy General Secretary was addressing the Divisional Executives Council, DEC of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation’s Divisional Union of the Public Services Workers Union, PSWU in Kumasi.
The PSWU Deputy General Secretary entreated the Divisional Union to bridge their relationship with management so as to protect all GBC lands which are being trespassed by private individuals and state institutions.
The DEC Meeting is the third of the current Union leadership and their last before the next National Delegates Conference.
According to the Union’s Constitution, DEC is the 2nd-highest decision-making organ of the Union after the Delegates Conference in taking major decisions regarding the running of the workers’ welfare umbrella body.
The meeting was attended by all the serving Divisional Executives and representatives from the various locals across the country.
The main business is for the Divisional Executive Officers and Audit Committee to update the participants about present state of the Union while each local is to submit a report on their activities for new action plan to be drawn for the remaining part of their tenure.
The DEC is also to receive and consider the financial position of the Divisional Union. At the opening ceremony, the Divisional Chairman, Sam Nat Kevor, asked management of the Corporation to give urgent attention to the serious operational challenges, including the lack and breakdown of logistics, in order to induce higher productivity among the workforce.
The Ashanti Regional Director of the GBC, Alhassan Abubakar, emphasised the relevance and key role the union plays in operations of the corporation as a check on management’s performance. He therefore called for a cordial partnership among the two organs so better the lot of the Corporation.
The Director of Human Resources, John Osei Korasare, attributed successful completion of negotiation for Categories Two and Three Allowance for GBC workers to the good relationship and cooperation among management and the Divisional Union.
He disclosed that the Board of Directors have approved a Draft new Organogram and Scheme of Service for the Corporation pending approval by the Public Services Commission, toward restructuring GBC to meet the demands of the changing times.
The Human Resources Director, however, called for a new mindset among the workers and Union if there was to be harmony in the workplace.