Business News of Friday, 23 January 2009

Source: Amankwah Nana Kofi

Delta Air Thinks They Has Hegemonic Power in Ghana

Delta Airlines continues to treat their Ghanaian employees as outcasts with their low wages, no health benefits or personal days. These Ghanaians workers from Delta Airlines work under stressful conditions and intimidation from their America bourgeoisie who are the elites. The Delta agency known as Debill monitors their security at the departure check points and their ticket service counter at the Kotoka International Airport. They have the audacity to treat them as foreigners in their own land. Many of these Ghanaian employees have become terrified of this Debill agency. If they say something about their conditions they will loose their jobs

Delta Airlines has benefitted from this Ghana Accra and New York J.F.K Airport route with numerous passengers moving around to other places in the African continent by using Kotoka Airport as their transit base. However, they continue to think that their Ghanaian employees are elated to be subjected to their unfair labor practices. As a result of this, Delta Airlines cannot acknowledge that these employees who they regard as their vassals are no different for Delta employees within the U.S . “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights...”

Ladies, Gentlemen, and Nananum, with all the millions of dollars Delta Airlines make from Ghanaians who travel with their airbus on a daily basis. Delta Airline has only three employees as their permanent employers who are on their payroll as Delta staff in Ghana. The saddest aspect in this is that these aforementioned permanent employees of Delta are paid only three thousand dollars a month for all three. They are all being Ghanaians. Some of them are former Ghana airways senior staff members who are now running this successful business for them. One of the three employee is being paid (2,000) two thousand dollars a month and the other two are being paid five hundred dollars ($500) each a month. The combined yearly income for these individuals is $36.000. This is what just one of their counter service employees makes a year over here in America. This is an insult for these individuals who are all college graduates and this includes the majority of their staff that are working for the Delta Debill agencies at the Ghana Accra Airport. Furthermore their Delta American Debill agency workers who monitor the security and the ticket counter treat these Ghanaians workers as under class. Meanwhile these Americans make thousands of dollars biweekly in salaries. One can compare and contrast this to other International Airlines that operate from the same avenue in Ghana such as British Airways, KLM and other Airlines. Delta Airlines treatment of their Ghanaian employees is an insult not only to their employees but to all Ghanaians. If one fails, we all do. No one wins until we all do. I urge the labor committee in parliament to look into these cruel practices from the Delta Airlines labor remedial agreement with government to rectify this unfair disastrous labor accord with their Ghanaian staff. If Delta has rebellion by their egocentric greedy and do what they want without obeying Ghanaian labor regulations. Delta cannot, should not continue to treat their African employees as Sixth class Citizens. After all they are all cyclical employees without benefits and health coverage. While the majority of these staff have personally made human capital investments for their future already, but due to the unemployment situation in the country that should not become an opportunity for Delta Airlines to treat them like this.

From: Nana Kofi Amankwah (New York)