Dr Clement Apaak
The decision by the workers of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to sue the Government over the severance package in the privatisation of the ECG is a good action, Dr Clement Apaak, a former presidential staff, has said.
According to him, the issues surrounding the privatisation of the ECG and the severance package for the workers are murky and therefore, the court action will bring clarity and finality on the matter.
A thousand and one workers of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) are in court to challenge moves to hand over the operations of the company to a concessionaire without any redundancy package for them.
They are urging the Labour Division of the High Court to declare that sending ECG workers, including the plaintiffs, on permanent transfer constitutes a redundancy.
Mr Benedict Kanose, a worker of the ECG, is leading the workers as the first plaintiff, while the Public Utilities Workers Union (PUWU) is the second plaintiff, with the ECG, the Attorney-General and the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) as the defendants.
The workers are also asking for a declaration that the decision by the Minister of Energy to conduct redundancy negotiations with individual employees of the ECG, including the plaintiffs, is illegal and constitutes a gross violation of Section 65 of the Labour Act.
Commenting on this development on TV3’s New Day on Saturday, October 7, Dr Apaak said: “The most appreciate avenues to seek redress is the court. “The issues are soo murky, the workers are confused and don’t even know what to believe anymore. So I think going to court will bring finality on the issue.”
