Public Sector Committee Plans Awareness Campaign

Accra, (Greater Accra) 9 Oct.,

Accra, (Greater Accra) 9 Oct., The Public Awareness Programme (PAPROG) plans to meet all stakeholders in the implementation of the Public Sector Incomes Policy to educate them on the content, objectives and spirit of the policy. This was made known by Mr John Yaw Amankrah, chairman of PAPROG, at a day's awareness creation meeting in Accra on the Public sector medium to long term incomes policy organised by the programme. The meeting was to educate stakeholders to understand and appreciate the content, objectives, the spirit and purpose of the Public Sector Incomes Policy (the Price Waterhouse Policy). It was attended by representatives of the Civil Servants Association, Ghana Registered Nurses Association, Ghana National Association of Teachers and the Judicial Service Association of Ghana. Mr Amankrah said the meeting had become necessary to demonstrate the commitment of the government to the successful implementation of the policy. He said one logical development in the implementation of the policy ''is the need to educate the public, particularly on what the Ghanaian worker stands to benefit from it. ''We are going to meet all other stakeholders including organized labour and policy makers at seminars in Accra, all the regions and later in the districts''. Mr Amankrah said the time has come for the policy to be seen as a property and asset of the workers of Ghana and no more as a Price Waterhouse Policy, hence the official name "Public Sector Incomes Policy" Dr Kwabia Boateng, a labour marketing consultant, said the incomes policy aims at achieving equity in salaries for equal work done and suggested one central body to supervise the revision of job worth. Dr Boateng defined an incomes policy as any attempt by government to determine wages and salary structures and working conditions with the aim of achieving national socio-economic objectives. These objectives include equity, alleviation of poverty and mechanism for administration of wages and also bridging the gap between lower and higher wages to a level that will not affect the micro economic standing of the nation. Dr Boateng said previous reports by committees on salary reviews had not been implemented because they could not fashion out mechanisms for the implementation of their recommendations.