'Dismiss Them', Western Veneer and Lumber Company

The Committee of Enquiry set up by the management board of the Western Veneer and Lumber Company Limited, to look into workers? allegations and grievances has recommended the dismissal of the executives of the workers? union "for leading the illegal strike which has also created financial loss to the company and the state as a whole".Image The four-member committee, which was chaired by R.S Quarm, a member of the board, also recommended that the union executives should be invited by the security agencies for further enquiry into the roles played by any outsider in the "illegal strike action: The committee noted that the workers? strike action was illegal explaining that procedures taken by the union were contrary to the provisions of Labour Act 651.

The committee also discovered that most of the allegations against management were without any evidence. "Management had sound responses supported by evidence to the allegations relating to salaries, long service award, purchases of engines and trucks....," it said.

The committee further noted that both the union and senior staff could not produce any evidence to support their claims of diversion of logs.

It noted that a fact-finding committee comprising Michael Obeng, union chairman and Robert Cudjoe, union vice-chairman had in a report dated June 28, exonerated the Managing Director of log diversion and other charges.

The committee identified other remote causes of the strike as undue delay in the divestiture of the company the large number of idle hands and the entrenched culture of forcible management removals.

Other members of the committee were Tabi Agyarko (Board member Joshua Ansah of the Woodworkers Union of the TUC and Emmanuel Kudoga of the Western Regional Bureau of National Investigations.