Ghana National Association Of Teachers (GNAT) has through its leadership warned the government of Ghana to keep its hands-off Pension Funds in its Debt Restructuring efforts aimed at securing a $3 billion IFM bailout by May 2023.
The National Association of Teachers (GNAT) General Secretary, Thomas Tanko Musah, has stated that the union will stand firm on its agreement reached with the government to exempt pensions from the ongoing debt restructuring program.
He added the GNAT fraternity is not aware of any alternative offers made by the government or communicated to the union.
A letter from the Office of the Minister of Finance called on the Board of Trustees of pension funds to consider including such funds in the proposed debt restructuring offer following several engagements.
Mr. Musah however, indicated that a distinction needs to be made between organized labour and the various schemes that make up organized labour, so as not to mistake a scheme’s statements for the position of organized labour.
“It is important to note two things: first, there is a distinction between organized labour and individual schemes. For instance, if a union leader engages in negotiations or discussions with the government, they do not represent organized labour but rather their specific scheme. Second, to the best of Mr. Musah’s knowledge, organized labour has not had any discussions with the committee regarding any haircut or a second round of negotiations. Therefore, the individuals who engaged with the committee did so in the name of their scheme and cannot speak on behalf of organized labour”.
READ: GES Staff IDs For All Teachers – Check Yours Here
“If a person goes to engage with the government in the name of their scheme, they cannot speak for organized labour. This is because the agreement between the government and organized labour is binding on the entire body, and no individual can engage in discussions on behalf of organized labour without first consulting with the body that made the decision.”
[wp-rss-aggregator]