Over 41,000 graduate nurses are currently unemployed

The Graduate Unemployed Nurses and Midwives Association (GUNMA) has revealed that a number of 41,793 nurses and midwives are currently unemployed.

According to them, government promised immediate employment after school after continuing student were denied allowance but have failed to fulfil this promise.

They added that no single nurse or midwife was employed in the year 2018.

At a press conference in parliament with the Minority, the national president of the association, Sugri Abdul-Rafiq, said they were arrested because they tried finding out when they will be given financial clearance from the health ministry.

This, he said, was during a picketing exercise at the ministry.

"On 20th August 2019, a press conference was organized in Accra and a 21 working day ultimatum given to government to responded to our concerns raised. Failure on the part of government to respond to our issues made leadership to write a letter to the Ministry of Health and called for a meeting on 27th September 2019,” he said.

Abdul-Rafiq noted that members of the association were not pleased the deputy human resource officer of the ministry told them they are still working on their clearance,hence their decision to picket

“Prior to our picketing a letter was submitted to the regional police commander on the 4th October 2019. and to the ministry to notify them of our intention to picket on the said date indicated in our letter." He added.

The group is therefore calling on government to address their concerns, as attempts to meet the health minister has proven futile.