The Wahala of a Ghanaian Employee; a Perspective of Samuel Doe's Predicament

Mr. Samuel Doe is a Ghanaian and a former employee of M.Barbisotti & Sons Ltd construction companies based in Accra and located at Haatso,owned and managers by one foreigner by name Mr. Barbisotti. After working for the company for almost half a decade ,the unschooled Ghanaian mason, on one occasion, left the working premises to attend to nature's call since such a facility was absent on the site .This necessary and undeniable call by nature as Samuel Doe acted attracted the maximum penalty of dismissal from his employer in the year 2005. After several fruitless attempts to settle the dispute through the Local Trade Union Congress and Management, he finally sought refuge at the offices of the National Labour Commission on the 17th of May 2005 at their offices in Accra. Going through the usual and unbearable nature of this country's Labour dispute settlement processes, the commission made a ruling in his favor on the March of 2009,it was decided that the petitioner, Samuel Doe should be paid a month salary and all bonus entitled to him as well as an order compelling management to reverse his dismissal into termination of appointment as amicable settlement.

As though the Youngman had finally secured an antidote to his woes and inhuman treatment at the hands of his employers, it has been more than two years till date,that Samuel Doe's employers have openly shown their disregard and blatant disrespect for the ruling of the country's mandated institution i.e. National Labour Commission. Narrating his story in tears as he sat at the front office of the Commission, the former employee said he has for the past two years appealed to the Commission to enforce the directive through his consistent attitude of visiting the offices of the commission twice each week for the past two years. In addition to this, he has for the past 6years demanded as a matter of right as a TUC Member that the congress comes to his aid but all proved fetal, indeed a battle for survival and restoration of his human dignity at display.

In seeking confirmation from the other party, the Local TUC Chairman at the company, one Mr. Ishmael, confirmed that the story as true and added that they as Workers Union have for the past years failed to bridge peace between Samuel Doe and Management, blaming it on his insistence to seek settlement outside the company. Asking why he didn’t refer the case to the regional or national level, the local chairman had no excuse but added that he was committed to seeking internal ways of solving the issue.

As we mark our 54th anniversary of independence as a sovereign state, it is only proper that we begin to examine such state framework as that which protects what we commonly refer to us average Ghanaian workers by asking ourselves certain critical questions such as ability of the Labour Commission independence to enforce its rulings or even how fair is it to dismiss one on such grounds as stated above? And ultimately where do the many Ghanaian workers like Samuel Doe go from this point when such institutions as NLC and TUC fail? That is if they are able to survive another long-run of dispute settlement processes since such persons remain unemployed throughout this period. Samuel Doe has since stayed unemployed for almost 6years and yet has dependents of a wife and child.

It is not surprising that many Ghanaians find themselves in foreign lands seeking for opportunities to work to better their lots. A case in point is the current state of our stranded Ghanaian brothers and sisters who are locked up in Libya for the same reasons. Why not! If they are exposed to similar harsh working conditions as that of Samuel Doe in his own motherland, where their dignity to a better life is suppressed and sometimes denied than its better to face that in a foreign land and perhaps for a higher reward.

It is therefore important to draw our minds to the countless number of petitioners on such crossroads of total denial and helplessness, a place where your Accuser and Adjudicator abandoned them to their fate whiles recorded in the books of the later as haven been resolved, a pity indeed! Does the work of the NLC end at giving ruling without any responsibility to see to their enforcement? This obviously should serve as a wake-up call to the supervisory Ministry i.e. Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare to act now by looking at the functions of an organ as that of the National Labour Commission and at large the Labour Institutions and frameworks of the country. Samuel Doe and his young family need your urgent help; perhaps giving an ear to his case will help him experience the better Ghana Agenda, seeing through the eyes of this miserable Petitioner. Congratulations to all Ghanaian Workers!!!