Dan Lartey kicks against minimum wage

Mr Dan Lartey of ?Domestication? fame and Leader of the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP) has described as woefully inadequate the new minimum wage of ?7,150. On 24 April 2002 the government announced a new minimum wage of ?7,150 as agreed by the Tripartite Committee made up of the government, Trade Union Congress and Employers Association of Ghana.

In an interview with The Ghanaian Voice, Mr Dan Lartey said the ?7,150 is no where near a dollar which is currently selling between 7,800 cedis to 7,900 cedis. ?So to peg the national minimum wage at ?7,150 is unfortunate he added.

He stressed that what the government should have quoted should have been around ?23,400 a day, ?Because a ball of Kenkey now sells at ?1000 and if a worker decides to limit his/her diet by taking only two balls of Kenkey and the same amount for fish for only breakfast. That would be his total spending on only food assuming that he or she projects three square meals a day? He quizzed. Mr Lartey added, ?A worker who has a wife and children cannot cope with this minimum wage of ?7,150; what is he/she going to do with it?? he asked.

He however said what government must do is to mobilise all available resources both physical, natural and human to create more jobs especially in the Agricultural sector so as to absorb the numerous youth who have no jobs and who roam the streets. He also called on the government to grant subsidies to farmers to grow on large scale to cater for industrial raw materials in the country. ?In fact, this government has not done what is expected of it and ?must back up.? He ended.