Board will meet your leaders on June 6, buses due to be replaced – STC assures workers

The Intercity STC Coaches Limited has reacted to a petition by its workers addressed to the Board, resisting the appointment of a new Deputy Managing Director.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, June 4, 2024, signed by its Public Relations Officer, Anita Abaka-Sika, the company addressed the issues raised by the workers in their petition.

The STC Coaches Limited noted that arrears on Workers' Provident Contributions have dated from 2011, emphasizing that the "arrears have progressively been reduced to four years."

It explained that these four years have been largely due to the COVID-19 difficult operational environment.

Also, SSNIT arrears have dated from 2013, "STC is now current on monthly payments," with the arrears reduced to a little above GHS 4 million.

It revealed that the STC buses are due to be "replaced" as the bus fleet is aged 9 years for the Scania fleet and 5 years for the Daewoo fleet and also by the norm of Intercity (long-distance travel) standards, they are "overage," hence the frequent and prolonged visits to the workshop.

The statement stressed that the company is "currently making every effort to replace the entire fleet."

It further revealed that the company’s debt to ADB has been reduced from GHS 140,000 to GHS 80 million, with STC "paying GHS 2 million" to ADB.

The company also assured that the ISTC Board would meet with the Union leaders on Thursday, 6 June 2024, "to resolve the workers' anxieties over the new appointment," which has occasioned the petition.

Staff of STC have kicked against the appointment of a third deputy managing director.

The workers say the two existing deputies are enough as the corporation has more pressing needs that require attention.

Instead, the workers are of the opinion that the corporation needs to prioritize settling the GHS 6 million owed in pensions and the acquisition of more buses for the company.

The corporation has "operated without a Deputy Managing Director for a considerable period, suggesting that the reduction in deputy managing directors will not adversely affect our operations," the workers stated in a petition addressed to the Board of ISTC.

The workers emphasized the current challenges facing the company, particularly the "dwindling fleet of operational buses."

"Presently, out of a total of 145 buses, only 39 are deemed roadworthy."

The workers indicated that "This predicament is attributed to the inferior quality of the Daewoo buses acquired in 2020, resulting in frequent repairs and maintenance issues."

They also highlighted the "outstanding provident fund contributions and other statutory deductions, which are significantly overdue, that is, the Provident Fund arrears for about six years, the Tier 2 arrears totaling six months, and the SSNIT deductions which are in arrears exceeding six million Ghana Cedis (GHS 6,000,000.00)."