Civil Servants Association demands response from Government

The Civil Servants Association has called on the government to respond to correspondence on "crucial issues" affecting the wellbeing of workers.

According to Mr S. Y. A. Chigabatia, Executive Secretary of the Association, the secretariat of the Association is under pressure to explain the issues to its members. He cited rumours that the government has cancelled the proposed Health Insurance Scheme and said persistent efforts to get a response has proved futile while the process of getting refund for medical expenses have become cumbersome.

Mr Chigabatia said the Association's call for the establishment of a Permanent Secretariat with a Director-General for the administration of the Ghana Universal Salary Structure has also not been heeded. He said the current Central Management Board (CMB) handling issues under the structure is not in the interest of workers.

Mr Chigabatia said a request to resolve the issue on the percentage paid by Civil Servants occupying government houses has not yielded results. He noted that it is unfair for some senior officers to pay higher rents for houses with the same facilities as those occupied by junior officers. The Executive Secretary said that the decentralisation of the payment of pensions is not working because pensioners are asked by district officials of the Controller and Accountant-General's Department to travel to Accra for their cheques only to be told to return to their respective districts for collection. This has brought untold hardship to pensioners, who have to borrow money for their upkeep while in Accra.

He stressed the need to give incentives to Civil Servants in deprived areas and said that if teachers under similar circumstances should be motivated then they should be given a similar treatment. He therefore called for constant dialogue with the association to ensure industrial harmony.