Labour expert Austin Gamey has advised the government to engage labour unions following the revelation that there will be a reduction in public sector employees compensation by 0.5 percent of GDP.
Speaking on Joy FM Top Story, he stated that the government needs to be transparent and share information in its totality on decisions in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal that could affect employees.
This, he said, is to avoid misinformation and agitation by the public sector workers adding that the government could have had these discussions before presenting them to the IMF.
“You should have called a national meeting and shared information under Section 97 of the Labour Act and keep open the channels of communication with labour. They didn’t do it well. And now you are calling for a bedding sharing, that is why people are saying what they are saying. But it’s not entirely too late.”
He noted that the meeting “is about having conversation on the economy, reference to bedding sharing and related matters, so that all of us would be on the same common bench.”
Mr Gamey stated that regardless of the IMF conditionalities, government can ensure that the public sector workers are not over burdened in its attempt to meet targets.
“If you are going to be increasing utilities every quarter, who can pay it without adjustment, at least government working people? But we all do know that the government itself does not have the funds in totality. So they must have a meeting as quickly as possible with labour.”
This comes after the government is targeting to reduce compensation of public sector employees by 0.5 percent of GDP.
According to the government, it is undertaking what it describes as wage moderation to achieve the target.
This is contained in the Ghana 3-year programme with the International Monetary Fund to achieve fiscal discipline and return the country back to economic growth.
The document also says wages of public sector workers will be calibrated to ensure a balance between burden sharing, productivity, and capacity to pay.
Meanwhile, the Minister of State at the Finance Ministry Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, says there will be no freeze on employment.
According to him, the government will employ for critical sectors of the economy.
“There is no where is the statement that says there is a freeze on employment. We are not going to do that. But this is not also different from what we have been doing.”
“For the past two years, recruitment on the government side which are the security agencies, teachers and nurses are critical to our development and these recruitments are backed by financial clearance.”
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