The Fair Wages and Salaries Commission says it is surprised by the posturing of the Mortuary Workers Association of Ghana (MOWAG) in ongoing negotiations concerning the conditions of service and salaries of members of the association.
The Association has threatened to embark on a strike action soon saying the Health Ministry and other allied partners have refused to engage them.
In an interview with Citi New, the Chief Executive Officer of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, Dr. Edward Kwapong said they are hoping to meet members of the Association on Wednesday to resolve issues.
“On the 8th of May we met with them, the General Secretary together with their consultants and a couple of their executives…We decided that there are a few issues that we need to resolve and so we should reconvene on 29th of this month but last week they dropped a note threatening a strike and we said that how can you do that? We are in talks with you, we have engaged you, both parties have agreed to go back and do a few checks to ensure due diligence so what is the essence of you going on a strike? We are looking forward to meeting them on Wednesday,” he said.
The Association announced its intention to embark on another strike if the Ministry of Health fails to address its concerns.
The group called off a three-day strike two months ago after a meeting with the National Labour Commission, and a promise by the Ministry to enter into negotiations with them.
The workers have been protesting poor conditions of service.
A statement from the Association said the Ministry and other allied partners do not intend to listen and resolve their grievances, thus their decision to go on strike again soon.
President of the Association, Edward Mensah Akpakudi in an interview with Citi News said the Association is bent on embarking on a strike to get their concerns addressed.
“There has not been any sign of negotiation. We think that some people are still conspiring to drag our feet. We shall embark on a strike. We are not sure when but we will communicate clearly to the public and the media. This strike is going to be serious…We will not be intimidated or bullied around as if we do not know what we are doing. We are tired of stories.”