New Labour Bill could create chaos at the workplace

Accra, Sept. 24, GNA - A Lecturer at the Ghana School of Law has described the New Labour Bill as a major disincentive to employee and employer relationship, especially where the employer's rights were concerned.

Mr Joseph Aryitey, who is also a Legal Consultant, said, even though, President John Agyekum Kufuor is yet to give his assent to the Bill, there was need to revisit some of the new aspects which if neglected could create an unstable and constant state of mistrust between employees and unions on one hand and employers on the other. He said aspects of the new Bill on strikes had it that workers be paid fully for days on which they were on a legal strike.

Mr Aryitey was speaking at a lecture organised by the Ghana Employers Association ahead of its Annual General Meeting to be held in Accra on Thursday September 25. Employers and captains of industry attended the lecture.

Mr Aryitey said the current situation where workers got paid for days on which they had worked would soon be no more, adding that it would put employers in a rather uncomfortable situation.

"They would have to continue paying persons, who had taken a confrontational stand against their employers and are not working, even though, the employers may not be able to support the situation."

Mr Aryitey said the new Bill prevented a worker from being fired by just paying him off in lieu of a number of months.

He, however, indicated that appointments could be terminated on the grounds of sexual harassment.

He was of the opinion that the new law was also discriminatory against employers where it requests of them to train and retrain employees of all kinds.

"This creates a problem where there could be two persons, one hard working and the other not so hardworking and only shows himself around. "When there is an opportunity to train should the employer train these two people instead of firing one and replacing him," Mr Aryitey questioned.

Mr Aryitey said the Bill was too sympathetic to casual staff without taking into cognisance the financial burden it puts on employers.

The new Bill seeks to provide overtime allowance for casual labourers, who must also be served notice if their services were no longer needed.

Mr Aryitey said in the new Bill, employees must be reinstated, even when they had been found to guilty of misconduct on the job. "This must not be since it could create a problem of loyalty and credibility at the workplace."

The new Bill, however, stops workers from participating in politics contrary to the situation in the United Kingdom and in previous times in Ghana when there was the Social Democratic Party.

"I think that is unfortunate and myopic; one should allow unions to form a party and contest elections if they so wish."