Court orders NLC to force POTAG into arbitration

An Accra Human Rights Court, on Monday ordered the applicant, National Labour Commission (NLC) in the case involving the Commission and Polytechnic Teachers Association of Ghana (POTAG) to force POTAG into arbitration within 10 days.

The court made the order after counsel for the applicant failed to explain to the court as to why they filed the application and the directive. The court said the directive to POTAG was not based on the right procedures’, thus compelling them into arbitration was important, saying the issue is of national interest and something has to be done about it.

The court last adjourned the case because the submission to be filed by the respondent had not been placed on the docket of the court. The NLC was in court to enforce its directive for Polytechnic teachers to call off their over-a-month old strike as well as enforce its ruling in the disparity between the Government and POTAG over the scrapping of the research and book allowances.

The NLC had ruled that POTAG should return to work while arbitration procedures are initiated to address their concern but POTAG had refused. POTAG has since May laid down its tools after Government failed to pay its book and research allowance for the 2013/2014 academic year.

Meanwhile, members of the Polytechnic Students Association of Ghana, has asked Government to intervene in the disagreement between their lecturers and the NLC since the strike is affecting academic work.