Labour group calls for circumspect in VALCO saga

The Tema District Council of Labour (TDCL) has called on the government to be circumspect in its dealing with the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO), which is the main source of support to all aluminium industries in the country.

It said the VALCO crisis would have serious consequences on Aluworks Ghana Limited, Pioneer Aluminium Company, Ghana Aluminium and a host of small-scale aluminium product factories, which have created jobs for a good number of the unemployed in the informal sector.

This was contained in a statement issued at Tema, on Thursday, by the Executive Committee of the TDCL and signed by Mr Wilson Agana, Chairman and Mr Mohammad Baba Tairo, Secretary.

The statement was in reaction to the 48 hours notice given last Tuesday to VALCO, an aluminium smelter plant at Tema, by the Ministry of Energy to shut down two of its four operational pot lines to save 150 megawatts of electricity in view of the low water level of the Volta dam.

The TDCL noted that the rapidity of the Ministry of Energy's action in handling the matter would not give room for an orderly and well phased out programme to deal with the situation, thereby heighten the fears of workers in the aluminium industry and Tema in particular.

It, therefore, called on the government to consider the thousands of spiral job losses that may affect aluminium and allied workers, which may cause social menace such as school dropout and crime.

The TDCL said it appreciates government's bid to avoid irregular power supply to the Electricity Company of Ghana but urged government to use the current negotiation with VALCO to resolve all outstanding issues pertaining to VALCO's operations in a more humane manner.

This it said would ensure that workers do not suffer untold hardship as a result a of Government/VALCO crossfire. The TDCL expressed the hope that the government would consider its candid submission by suspending its immediate intention to cut VALCO's energy requirements that might cause the company to cut its production by 50 per cent until negotiations had been exhausted.

VALCO, which would have to lay off 1,250 workers, has indicated that it would require 30 days to shut down the two pot lines otherwise molten aluminium running through the pot lines would solidify resulting in a huge losses to the company.