Lab Scientists’ Strike in Bad Faith – NLC

The National Labour Commission (NLC) says the strike by the members of the Ghana Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists (GAMLS) is illegal.

The Executive Secretary of the NLC, Ofosu Asamoah told Citi News the Association failed to exercise the needed patience.

“We invited the Ministry, and we are writing to the Fair Wages Commission to join in. And so they were told that they should suspend any action by way of striking until the matter is fully determined and they agreed, only for them to go back and declare the strike while the matter is still pending.”

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health is expected to meet with the leadership of Association today.

The group went on strike on Monday to protest salary discrepancies they claim has existed for six years after the introduction of the Single Spine Pay Policy.

In an interview with Citi News, the Association’s President, Dr Ignatius Awinibunu, said they expected to meet with at least the Health Minister on the matter.

“We are ready to meet only the minister or anyone above him. We have discussed this matter with the minister on several occasions. We don’t want to go back to anyone below him to explain the whole matter again.”

“We expect a clear MOU, a clear commitment from the government in resolving the matter before we go back home. When we see signs that they are committed, we can look at it. We are reasonable people,” Dr Ignatius Awinibunu said.

The strike left hundreds of patients at public hospitals stranded.

The Association started its announced nationwide strike in objection to salary discrepancies that had existed for six years after the introduction of the Single Spine Pay Policy, among other things.

The Association has also accused medical superintendents and directors of disrespecting their profession by employing unlicensed personnel.

According to the Ghana Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists over 90 percent of laboratory processes in public health facilities in Ghana are not controlled, and this threatens the quality or accuracy of lab results churned out.

The Association blames this mainly on the lack of supervision and quality control.

Last Monday. Laboratory Technicians embarked on a partial withdrawal of their services across the country.