Medical Laboratory Workers’ Union to protest over conditions of service
The Medical Laboratory Workers’ Union (MELPWU) is threatening to protest if the government fails to address their conditions of service immediately.
The General Secretary of MELPWU, Dr. Cephas Kofi Akortor, expressed frustration over the government’s delay in finalizing their ongoing negotiations.
Dr. Akortor revealed that the union last met with the government on March 8, 2024, to discuss their conditions of service. Despite 80 per cent progress on the items, including non-financial and financial components, the union feels the process is dragging.
The General Secretary stressed that the union would consider alternative actions if the government failed to expedite the negotiation process.
“We are not happy about the way the government is approaching this negotiation, we started this process about a year ago, even before that time there has been a series of pre-meetings but it looks like the government is taking it slow and it is agitating members to protest.
“So for that, we have given the government a lot of time to be able to complete the process, but it looks like they are taking it slow so as we speak, the rank and file of our members are organizing, and I don’t know what can happen, but we are not surprised that even before the end of this month there can be an action from our members to demand their right”.
Mr. Akortor also disclosed that they have been waiting for an invitation from the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission(FWSC) to their next meeting but to no avail.
“In terms of time and date, we called on Fair Wages and Salaries Commission to give us the date, and we have been waiting since the last time we had our last meeting, which was the 8th of March. They have not communicated from their side to tell us when next we are meeting and we can’t also keep on meeting without their invitation”.
Stories of health professionals threatening to protest for conditions of service keep unfolding in the country.
The Graduate Unemployed Nurses and Midwives Association(GUNMA) in the Ashanti region is scheduled to protest today, Monday, April 8, 2024, to express their displeasure with the government’s failure to provide financial clearance to secure permanent employment.
The group claims they face significant livelihood challenges due to the government’s failure to post them.