Medical assistants and nurse anaesthetists of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) have called off a strike action they began one week ago to register their disappointment at the delay in rectifying anomalies in their salaries as a result of the implementation of the Ghana Universal Salary Structure.
The decision to call off the strike follows the intervention of Prof. Agyeman Badu Akosah, Director-General of the GHS, who pledged to address their concerns.
At a meeting held with the group in Kumasi on Wednesday, Prof Akosah gave them assurance that by the middle of January 2004 the GHS would have fully rectified the anomaly regarding their salaries.
"The GHS would go beyond that to ensure that medical assistants also benefit from a number of vehicles to facilitate their work," he said.
Prof Akosah advised them against resorting to strikes as a means of seeking redress but to follow the right procedures including the use of dialogue.
He advised them to be more organised, saying, "it is when you are well organised under a common umbrella that your voices can be quickly heard."
Mr Johnson Chiriga, secretary to the group, said the problem of the salary disparity had been with the group for the past two years and efforts at getting it resolved by the health authorities proved futile.
"However with the assurance given us by the Director-General, we have decided to call off our strike and set up a committee that will make follow-ups to ensure that the pledges are duly honoured and in good time."
