CHRAJ educates workers on their rights and responsibilities

Mrs Mary Nartey, Legal Officer at the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), on Wednesday called on workers to familiarise themselves with laws enshrined in the 1992 Constitution, to ensure full protection of their fundamental rights.

She said workers could only seek for redress of challenges they faced at their work places, when they were fully equipped with knowledge on the laws enacted to protect their rights.

Mrs Nartey made the call at a forum organised by the National Sports Council (NSC), to educate workers on their rights and responsibilities in Accra.

She said the issue of rights for workers was not limited to Ghana, hence the establishment of international and regional instruments, such as the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, International Covenants on Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the African Charter on Human Rights and People’s Rights, to curtail the abuse of workers rights

Mrs Nartey said Ghana had instrumental laws captured in the 1992 Constitution, Labour Act 2003, Workmen’s Compensation Act, Social Security and National Insurance Trust Act, and the Public Officers Act 1962, to ensure that workers were treated fairly by employers.

“As much as you seek for redress on challenges faced at places of work, ensure that all avenues in the organisation are exhausted before issues are referred to an appropriate authority to be resolved,” she added.

Mrs Nartey said it was alarming the rate at which employers used transfers as a tool of victimisation and for sexual favours, stressing that workers should gather the courage to resist such oppressions from employers.

She charged workers to adequately familiarise themselves with contract of employment, conditions of service, policy framework, plans and programmes of their employment, work conscientiously in the lawfully chosen occupation, and protect the interest of the employer.

Mr Haruna Dauda, Administrator of Public Education of CHRAJ, said it was unfortunate that most workers did not know their rights, hence the massive abuse of workers’ rights in the various institutions.

He noted that in order for workers to appreciate the significance of bodies responsible for rights protection, they must be fully educated on the mandates of these bodies.

Mr Dauda urged workers to ensure that conditions of services were in conformity with laws binding employers and employees, and therefore should not allow their rights to be submerged or bought.