Bereaved families in Ghana can now heave a sigh of relief as mortuary workers call off their strike

The Mortuary Workers Association of Ghana have called off their strike.
General Secretary of the group Richard Jordan said they took this decision because they are hopeful the government will address their grievances soon.
He, however, cautioned that they will embark on a massive strike if the government fails to meet their demands.

The Mortuary Workers Association of Ghana (MOWAG) has called off its nationwide industrial action after three days of disrupted services.

This decision was taken on Thursday (Match 7, 2019) after the leaders of MOWAG met with the National Labour Commission (NLC).

General Secretary Richard Jordan told Accra-based Citi FM that they are hopeful their grievances will be addressed by the government soon enough. He added that negotiations are expected to begin soon.

“The issues are that the strike is called off for now. There was a promise. Fair Wages were present. We have agreed at the meeting that immediately, we are going to negotiations, which we were looking for.”

He added that “there is no need keeping Ghanaians unnecessarily in this hardship.”

Several bereaved families who had planned to bury their dead relatives during the time the mortuary workers were on strike were left stranded since there were no attendants. Those who lost their relatives in that period could also not have access to the cold rooms where they could keep their dead bodies until it was time to bury them.

However, Mr Jordan said “there is no need dragging it especially when Ghanaians will have to bury tomorrow. For now, we think that it is just fair to give them that respect. Ghanaians deserve a lot of respect… we do not intend to punish anybody unnecessarily”

Mr. Jordan explained further that “there was a ruling. The ruling is that we are meeting the commission on Wednesday again and we are going to give a summary of the financial part of the proposal straight to the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission.”

He, however, cautioned the government that if their concerns were not met, “the next strike will not be nice at all. In fact, it will be dangerous.”