Demand 400% wage rise for workers – TUC urged

The Chief Executive Officer of GASAP Oil, Kojo Opoku, has proposed to the Trades Union Congress (TUC) to demand a 400 per cent increase in wages from the government, instead of pushing for a suspension of the recently increased tariff.

Speaking on Class91.3fm’s Executive Breakfast Show Thursday, Mr Opoku referred to the tariff increases as a necessary evil, saying the existing environment does not encourage business activities.

He noted that Ghanaians cannot afford the tariff hikes because they are not paid the right wages.

In his words “minimum wage is not minimum wage; it is basically no wage”.

In his view, instead of the TUC calling for the suspension of tariff hikes, “they should be, this morning, presenting a 400 per cent increase in wages to the government.”

According to him, if the government, after negotiations grants Organised Labour a 70 or 80 per cent increase in wages, then the union would have achieved something for its members.

Mr. Opoku said in the event that government suspends the tariff hike, “who is going to pay for the generation we are looking for?”

“We need people to come into the country and add onto the generation that we have. The existing environment does not give anybody hope,” he emphasised.

According to him, the tariff increases are necessary to encourage participation in the power sector because if that is not done “we are going to kill the industry and the consequences will be direr than what we have now.”