Organised Labour Dissenters Threaten To Sue Over Union's 'Unlawful' Galamsey Strike
- Some dissenters within Organised Labour have opposed the union's decision to embark on an industrial action
- The group claimed that the calls for a nationwide strike were 'politically motivated' and 'unreasonable'
- These members have threatened to sue Organised Labour should their strike proceed on October 10, 2024
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Some dissenting members of Organised Labour have threatened to sue the union should it proceed with its industrial action on October 10, 2024.
Organised Labour declared it would go on strike on October 10 to protest against the illegal mining menace commonly known as galamsey and the government’s seemingly nonchalant posture in addressing the pressing issue.
Source: Getty Images
However, groups from within Organised Labour have resisted the union’s calls for a nationwide strike.
According to Dr Sampson Anomah, a senior lecturer at the Kumasi Technical University, the leadership of Organised Labour failed to properly engage members regarding whether or not to go on strike.
He said the lack of engagement and consultation thus brought to question the legality of the strike declaration.
In an interview on JoyNews on October 8, 2024, Dr Anomah alleged that the declaration of the industrial action and the lack of consultation suggested the strike was politically motivated.
He said he and other dissenters were prepared to sue Organised Labour over its strike declaration.
“We have already planned our legal action. We will not sit down and let them take us for a ride and mix politics with this galamsey issue,” he said.
He further argued that the issue of illegal mining was too complex and too politicised to be rushed and with the general election just around the corner, it was unreasonable for the union to demand the government resolve the matter in that short space of time.
Dr Anomah added that the recent interest in galamsey, despite the menace's existence for years, buttressed his point that those pushing for a nationwide strike had a political ulterior motive.
He said that, under the current circumstances, any action taken by the government would be drastic and reckless and cause chaos rather than solve the problem.
"We don’t want to see a situation where a hasty decision is taken and innocent people suffer,” he said.
GMA withdraws from anti-galamsey strike
Meanwhile, the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) said that while it stands in solidarity with Organised Labour in its fight against galamsey, it would not join the October 10 strike.
In a statement, the association urged its members to report to work without interruption, leading to a petition from a GMA member demanding the association's president be removed.
GMA president faces impeachment
YEN.com.gh reported that the Ghana Medical Association has been petitioned to impeach its president, Dr Frank Serebour.
The petition follows a directive signed by Dr Serebour instructing members to avoid the Organised Labour strike on October 10.
Proofread by Bruce Douglas, senior copy editor at YEN.com.gh
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Source: YEN.com.gh
