NLC directs GHA workers to suspend strike

The National Labour Commission (NLC) has ordered workers of the Ghana Highway Authority (GHA) to suspend their ongoing strike.

The strike, which began on Tuesday, November 12, 2024, is in protest against the implementation of the National Roads Authority Act, 2024 (Act 1118).

The GHA workers argue that the Act, which proposes the merger of the GHA with the Department of Urban Roads and the Department of Feeder Roads, would undermine the Authority’s autonomy and lead to increased bureaucratic inefficiency.

Central to the dispute is a demand for the removal of two key officials: Ing. I.K. Mensah, Chairman of the GHA Board, and Ing. Collins B. Donkor, Chief Executive Officer of the National Roads Authority (NRA). The workers accuse these officials of being complicit in decisions they believe jeopardize the integrity of the roads sector.

This development follows a formal petition submitted to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, in which the workers called for wider consultations before the new Act is fully implemented.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the NLC urged the GHA workers to halt their industrial action as negotiations continue. The NLC noted that, during its meetings with both parties, it found that the workers did not adhere to the proper legal process outlined in the Labour Act, 2023 (Act 651) regarding their strike action.

As a result, the NLC directed that the workers—the GHA, the Senior Staff Association, and the Divisional Union of the Construction and Building Materials Workers Union of GHA (CBMWU-TUC)—must follow the correct procedures. The Commission also instructed that the strike be suspended while the due process is followed.