Mortuary workers angry; threaten strike again

The members of the Mortuary Workers Association of Ghana (MOWAG) are fuming over the government’s “feet-dragging” attitude in dealing with their concerns.

The mortuary workers went on an indefinite strike on 5 March 2019 but resumed work after three days after the National Labour Commission (NLC) invited them to the dialogue table to find ways of addressing their grievances, which include the lack of maintenance of mortuary facilities, denial of their mandated annual leave, and the lack of protective clothing, among others.

But a month on, the mortuary workers say the negotiation has stalled due to the government’s lukewarm posture.

The General Secretary of MOWAG, Mr Richard Kofi Jordan, said on Thursday, 18 April 2019 that: “We are going to fire again as usual. We will embark on a nationwide strike”.

He said the NLC directed that the parties involved should engage in negotiations, which all the parties accepted. However, he pointed out that no negotiations have taken place.

In his view, the establishment is only “trying to buy time and delay the process”.

Mr Jordan said the group intends meeting to decide the way forward.