The umbrella body of the Ghanaian workers, the Trades Union Congress (TUC), on Tuesday, stormed the Chinese power firm, Sunon Asogli Power Ghana Limited, to protest the dismissal of three staff of the company who are executives of the Ghana Mines Workers’ Union (GMWU).
The TUC, led by its Secretary-General, Dr. Yaw Baah, gathered at the Methodist Church in Kpone and walked through the streets to a police barricade close to the power plant.
The TUC Secretary-General, Dr Yaw Baah; National Chairman of Ghana Mines Workers’ Union Abdul-Rauf Issahaku; and the General-Secretary, Abdul-Moomin Gbana, took their turns to address the protesters.
They accused the management of Sunon Asogli Power Ghana of disrespecting the labour laws of Ghana.
The General Secretary of Mines Workers’ Union, Abdul-Moomin Gbana said the staff of Asogli Power Ghana Limited approached them to join the union and engaged their management and conducted an election to select union executives.
He said few days after the selection of the executives, management sacked three executives including the chairman.
According to him, Ghana is not a banana republic where laws are not respected and warned the company to desist from breaching the laws of Ghana.
He said both the Labour Law and the 1992 Constitution of Ghana allow freedom of association and the formation of unions.
“We are not against any investor coming to Ghana, but Sunon Asogli’s $750 million cannot buy our rights so today, we are demonstrating to the whole world that unions in this country will exercise our rights.
“Our demands are very simple and we have made it clear to our employer that our three colleagues must be reinstated and we will fight and fight till they are reinstated.”
General Secretary of TUC, Dr Yaw Baah called on President Nana Akufo-Addo to wake up and ensure that Ghanaians are not mistreated by their foreign employers.
He said failure on the part of the President to intervene to reinstate the workers would compel the TUC to mobilise and picket at the Jubilee House, the seat of Government.
Meanwhile, Sunon Asogli Power Ghana Limited has rejected claims that they are against the formation of a union in the company.
The company, in a statement issued last week, said it is rather against the procedure being adopted by the Ghana Mine Workers Union.
They accused the TUC of failing to engage with management and rather siding with the Mines Workers Union.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com