Accra,
Nov. 25,
Ghanadot/GNA
– The
National
Democratic
Congress
(NDC) on
Tuesday
spelled
out its
industrial
relations
agenda,
saying
it would
invest
more in
genuine
social
dialogue
and
collective
bargaining
to
ensure
that
peaceful
industrial
relations
and the
orderly
and
speedy
settlement
of
disputes
were
achieved.
It said
it was
an NDC
government
that
initiated
the
major
law
reform
process
to
overhaul,
update
and
codify
the
country’s
labour
legislations
culminating
in the
passage
of the
Labour
Act,
2003
(Act
651).
“With
the
passage
of the
Act the
expectation
of all
the
social
partners
was that
the
necessary
flexibility
will be
injected
into the
labour
market
and that
industrial
relations
will
move
away
from the
fire-fighting
model to
a more
proactive
system
aided
solidly
by
bipartite
and
tripartite
co-operation
and
collaboration,”
Mr John
Mahama,
vice
presidential
candidate
of the
party
said in
an
address
to civil
servants
and
other
labour
unions
in
Accra.
He said
an NDC-led
government
would
work
with
organized
labour
and
other
social
partners
to
actualize
the
vision
of the
Labour
Act and
to
deepen,
refine
and
fine-tune
its
provisions,
if
necessary,
to give
it more
impetus
and
vitality.
On the
National
Labour
Commission
(NLC),
he said
the
party
was
aware of
the
difficulties
it faced
such as,
inadequate
budgetary
allocation
and
human
resource
constraint;
the
limitation
on its
ability
to
enforce
legitimate
labour
decisions
for
instance,
on the
arbitrary
termination
of
appointment
of
workers.
Mr
Mahama
said
there
will be
minimum
delay in
establishing
the full
complement,
both in
quality
and
quantity,
of
commissioners
of the
NLC and
employees,
pointing
out that
the
present
situation,
where
there
was only
one
legal
expert
serving
on the
commission
was
grossly
unacceptable.
“The
establishment
of
structures
of the
Commission
at the
Regional
level
will
receive
early
attention
and will
be
carried
out in
phases.”
Mr
Mahama
noted
that the
District
structures
will
take a
while to
establish
due to
the
expected
large
financial
and
human
resource
commitments
the
exercise
will
require.
“Just as
the NDC
found
time-tested
mechanisms
during
its
tenure,
to
alleviate
extreme
difficulties
associated
with the
funding
of
education,
road
construction
and
maintenance,
and
export
development
so shall
it find
the
means to
help the
NLC
resource
itself
to
enable
it exert
its
independence
and
deliver
on its
mandate
without
fear or
favour.”
On a
strategic
public
sector
wage
policy,
Mr
Mahama
said, in
line
with its
social
democratic
ideology
the NDC
was
committed
to
social
justice,
equity
and the
constitutional
principle
of equal
pay for
work of
equal
value.
It would
therefore
work
expeditiously
with
labour
towards
the
formulation
and
adoption
of an
agreement
on a
strategic
wage
policy
framework
covering
all
labour
groups
in the
public
sector.
“While
taking
on board
as
appropriate
the new
reforms
initiated
by the
NPP
government,
we will
ensure
the
introduction
of a
unified
single
spine
salary
structure
for all
workers
in the
public
sector.”
Mr
Mahama
said an
NDC
government
would
“promote
a new
order of
salary
administration
whose
hallmark
shall be
rationality,
consistency,
equity,
social
justice
and the
constitutional
principle
of equal
pay for
work of
equal
value”.
He said
the
party
was
committed
to the
setting
of
minimum
daily
wage as
a way of
providing
a safety
net for
the
vulnerable
and a
guide to
employers.
“The
ultimate
aspiration
of our
party,
indeed,
is to
achieve
a living
wage for
working
people.
The
inability
of the
economy
to meet
this
commitment
has
always
been
cited as
the
black
spot.
“I do
not
believe
that
this
country
is too
poor to
meet
this
commitment
if we
manage
our
resources
in a
more
rational
manner
and pick
our
priorities
right.
“The NDC
shall do
well to
harness
revenues
from
cocoa,
gold,
and
non-traditional
value
added
exports
as well
as the
anticipated
oil
export
to
motivate
workers
to
increase
productivity
and grow
the
economy
for the
benefit
of all.”
On
Housing,
the NDC
said
available
data
indicated
that the
housing
deficit
was in
excess
of
500,000
units,
whilst
housing
supply
growth
varied
between
25,000
and
40,000
units
per
annum,
against
annual
requirements
of about
100,000.
He said
the NDC
intended
to
introduce
a number
of
interventions
that
will
accelerate
shelter
provision,
particularly
for
low-income
earners.
These
include
granting
of tax
credits
and
other
incentives
for
private
estate
developers
who
would
explore
the
production
and use
of
improved
local
materials
and
appropriate
technology
in the
built
industry
to bring
down the
cost of
buildings.
GNA
