Private Sector asked for full participation in work of Commission

Accra, Jan 11, GNA - Private Sector groups have requested their full participation in the deliberations of the proposed Fair Wages Commission, a body that is to be set up by the Government, to administer salaries across the public sector.

Briefing the media after a Private Sector roundtable on the 2007 Budget, the group made up of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI); Ghana Employers' Association; Ghana Chamber of Mines; Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Federation of Ghanaian Exporters said their immediate inputs in the work of the Commission was necessary to ensure that any outcome was fair to all stakeholders.

The Government announced the setting up of a Fair Wages Commission in the 2007 Budget to undertake job evaluation; analyse existing data and job content reviews along with market surveys and other research needed to determine the relative worth of all Public Sector positions.

Consequently, a single pay spine would be implemented to cover all positions in the Public Sector making it easier to perform job evaluations and determine the relative worth of every Public sector position.

The result of the work of the Fair Wages Commission would take effect from the 2008 Budget.

Mr Tony Oteng-Gyasi, President of AGI, said it was

important that the Private Sector participated fully in the

discussions of the Commission since decisions it took had

implications for companies in the Sector. "We want to get on board at the initial stages to help to

drive the discussions and ensure that decisions reached work

in the interest of all," he said.

Mr Oteng-Gyasi said since the success of the Private Sector depended on effective partnership with the Public Sector all efforts to enhance the performance in the Sector was welcomed.

Other issues of concern to the Private Sector were the

current energy crisis in the country, which Mr Oteng-Gyasi

said must be tackled immediately in order not to erode the

economic gains so far achieved. As a first step the Government must allow Private Sector

participation in energy generation and distribution to break

the over-reliance on the Volta River Authority and the

Electricity Company of Ghana. Mr Oteng-Gyasi urged the Government to ban the use of

incandescent lamps in homes and in offices because of its

high energy consumption rate and to institute a programme

to change all such lamps to CFL. This, he said, could be done by selling the CFL bulbs at the

same price as incandescent lamps.

Mr Charles Coffie, President of Ghana Employer Association, said there was the need to take a second look at the investment code and reserve certain areas for Ghanaians.

"We are really not against competition but in a liberalized economy sectors that foreigners participate in should be those that add value to products," he said. Mr Coffie welcomed the domestic content bill and called for incentives to local industries that used local raw materials up to 50 per cent. He said the Private Sector was prepared for dialogue on the bill.

The roundtable attended by the Minister of Finance, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu agreed to a monthly meeting to deal with issues of mutual concern. 11 Jan. 07