National Executive member of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) who is also a member of the May Day National Planning Committee, Rebecca Abaidoo Ocran has hinted that the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the various workers unions are united to press home their demands for salary increment and improved working conditions from employers.
“There is rising cost of living and serious adjustments well above workers incomes, therefore, there is an urgent need for a review of the public sector remuneration system. As organized labour we are coming up fully to push home our demands. We are going to push and push very hard” she told Alfred Ocansey on 3FM Sunrise Morning Show.
This year’s May Day celebration is under theme: Protecting Jobs and Income in the COVID-19 Era and beyond. The annual parade is also set to be held at the Independence Square after it was suspended for a while due to COVID. She explained that the impact of COVID 19 on labour is hard hitting and needs a critical attention of stakeholders.
According to Rebecca Abaidoo, organized labour is not oblivious of the impact of COVID and Russia Ukraine war, and believes that at the Tripartite level, they will be considered.
However, “We hope the President and the Vice President will be at the parade to listen and read the placards that would be displayed to ascertain for themselves what the workers are saying. We hope government officials at the parade will pay attention to workers and make the appropriate necessary adjustment in the salaries and working conditions of workers” she anticipates
In her response to the alarming Graduate Unemployment situation in Ghana, the labour union leader said “It is high time we elevate this discussion to the national level because a time is coming that things would get worse. We are talking about armed robbery and insecurity. You work hard to earn a decent living but because of the social and economic situation we have now, you are even scared to stay in your home.”
Rebecca Abaidoo describes Graduate Unemployment as a sad spectacle. “It’s a national security and economic threat. It is just a sad spectacle. People go to school with the hope to get a job but now it is difficult to encourage people to go to school because they will ask you what difference the school we make if there are no jobs for the graduates”
May 1st is celebrated in many countries as an international day for honouring workers for their roles in national development.
By Samuel Afriyie Owusu|3news.com|Ghana