Strike won’t end if parties disregard Labour Acts - Gamey

Mr Austin Gamey, a renowned labour expert has repeated his call that the country’s growing labour unrest can only end if all parties agree to respect the existing labour Acts.

Identifying the nation’s Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651) and the ADR Act, 2010 (Act 798), he said: “…if these two Acts had been followed to the letter and spirit by the stakeholders in these current labour disputes, Ghanaians would not have found themselves in these unfortunate, uncalled-for conflicts with all the avoidable consequences.”

He was speaking at the closing ceremony of the 17th session of the Professional Master of Appropriate Dispute Resolution (ADR) of the Gamey and Gamey ADR Institute at the Dzorwulu.

The doctors last Friday extended their nationwide strike for two more weeks to press home their demands for better conditions of service. Meanwhile Government has described their strike as illegal.

He said the task of creating a harmonious labour-management relationship was the responsibility of all stakeholders.

“The first requirement in discharging that responsibility is for all of us to be law-abiding,” he added.

Mr Gamey noted that ADR had become acceptable world-wide as one of the ways of resolving conflicts such as commercial cases, labour disputes, family, marital, land, chieftaincy conflicts among others.

He said the current happenings on the labour scene in Ghana were all indications of the fact that there was still a lot of work to be done to ensure that a peaceful and conducive environment was created in the workplace and the society in general.

The Gamey and Gamey ADR Institute trains ADR professionals and practitioners. It recently organized its 1st Alumni Conference for its past participants of the ADR programme.

Mr Gamey said the country would from 2017 streamline ADR into the Judicial System, which he added, would require well-trained and professional ADR practitioners.

The Institute, he announced, had been invited to meet with the University of Virgin Islands and PULSE Institute in the USA in September to sign affiliation to represent their interest on the entire Continent of Africa.