KNUST branch of TEWU against deductions

Kumasi, June 13, GNA- Members of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) branch of the Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) of the TUC has warned the management of the university not to deduct any amount from their monthly salaries towards the proposed investment fund and welfare pension scheme.

The members said "they would not be held responsible for any action that might occur as a result of the wrongful deduction from their salaries", which is being established by the leadership of the union.

"We wish to state categorically and in unambiguous terms that we would not be responsible for any discrepancy that may occur as a result of such purported deduction from our salaries for the proposed investment and welfare pension scheme", they emphasised. In a petition signed by almost all the members of the branch and issued to the Ghana News Agency in Kumasi on Friday, the workers stated that the proposed investment fund and pension scheme would not in anyway benefit them and as such they were not interested in its establishment. The petition was also copied to the Vice Chancellor, Registrar, Finance Officer, and Internal Auditor, all of KNUST, the Labour Commission, Acting General Secretary of TUC, TEWU-Legon, TEWU University of Cape Coast, and TEWU University for development Studies. According to them, they were not aware of the nature and function of the proposed investment fund "and they would not sit down unconcerned for some people to impose their ideas on them and use it to siphon their monies."

"What is more annoying was the arrogance and forceful manner in which the leadership of the union was trying to use to deduct the contributions from our monthly salaries" and insisted that they would not "remain a second fool". They recalled the establishment of the Labour Enterprises Trust (LET) with workers money about ten years ago but which, had not benefited any worker in the country and said it was time such dubious acts by some workers' leaders be scrutinized and halted to prevent further corruption and cheating of poor workers. The members said there was the need for the leadership of the TUC to sit down with the management of SSNIT to discuss and come out with acceptable benefits for pensioners instead of allowing individuals unions to establish clandestine pension funds, "whose operations were often pregnant with corruption and other activities, which were detrimental to the welfare of the worker."