Mine workers union upholds high women rights and dignity - Ankrah

The Ghana Mine Workers Union (GMWU) General Secretary, Mr Prince William Ankrah has urged women within labour unions not to underestimate their potentials in the face of challenges, and assured the GMWU’s commitment to continue to respect and promote gender activities at all times.

“The potential of women and men does not differ much and in most capacities women have demonstrated to do far better than men when given the chance. In the GMWU, I can assure you that there is nothing like sexual favours and or harassment because we respect the great potentials and contribution of the few women we have in the Union.”

Mr Ankrah said this when he officially inaugurated the rebirth of the Ladies Committee of the Precious Mineral and Marketing Company (PMMC), a unit within the local branch union of the Ghana Mine Workers in the company on Friday.

The eight-member Ladies Committee aims to create a forum to address women issues, to deeply integrate women in trades union movement, to empower women to take up central positions and to mitigate challenges confronting them.

The GMWU General Secretary welcomed the ladies committee describing its creation as laudable and an initiative that would promote healthy development within the GMWU.

“Our Union has a strong stake in the development of human capacity and the promotion of women issues,” he reiterated and indicated that at present women formed only eight per cent of the total membership of the GMWU in the country.

The GMWU National Chairman, Mr K Mensah Gyakari, who swore-in the ladies committee, also urged them to work as a team and strive to sustain the strength that had brought them together.

Mrs Philomena Aba Sampson, 2nd National Chairperson, said the creation of the ladies unit was in line with the tenets of global women movement and hoped the leadership would take advantage of the opportunity to contribute their quota to the growth and success of the Committee.

Mrs Edem Arnesin, Chairperson of the Ladies Committee urged colleagues to support them to achieve their goals, saying “no idea will be valueless to help steer the affairs of the committee.

In a related development, the Precious Mineral Marketing Company’s management signed new conditions of service with its Professional Managerial Staff Union (PMSU) of the GMWU.

The PMSU was established as a branch of the GMWU in December 2009 after series of consultations with the mother union and the management of the PMMC.

The Managing Director of the company, Mr Ruben Damptey signed on behalf of management and Mr Ankrah of the GMWU initialed for the PMSU.

Mr Ankrah urged the executives and other staff of the PMSU to study the clauses of the collective agreement in order to help guard against abuse and disregard of the document which is supposed to improve workers conditions as well as improve productivity at the work place.

“The collective agreement you have assigned today should not be swept under the carpet. The GMWU has come of age and value your membership as senior managers because hitherto, our Union was full of junior workers. Today we have various high level professionals including engineers and accountants.”

The Managing Director, PMMC also hoped the agreement would lead to improvement in productivity from staff in all areas and that they should let the Union’s principle of workers’ productivity spur them on to enhance the corporate image of the company.

He assured them of management’s commitment to ensure effective human and industrial relations in the company.