Doctors to seal negotiations on conditions of service

Accra, May 26, GNA - The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) is likely to seal a deal for better conditions of service when they meet the health minister and his team on Tuesday.

The GMA leadership and the government met over the weekend and are expected to fine tune negotiations that would hopefully end the doctors' work to rule action which has entered it ninth day. In an interview with the GNA in Accra on Tuesday the Deputy General Secretary of the GMA, Dr Frank Serebour, said they were keeping their fingers crossed to see what came out of the meeting. "We are hopeful that we would be able to tie the knot and more likely to go back to work," he said and added that for now it was a 50:50 situation.

He said it was not likely that their demand for 50 per cent increase in salary would be met but he was hopeful that they would be able to clinch improved working conditions that would be acceptable to members.

The GMA is demanding 50 per cent increase in salary while the government is proposing six per cent. The GMA has said since 2006 salaries of doctors had not been reviewed despite several attempts to get these issues resolved. The National Labour Commission (NLC) has reminded the GMA that its action to "work-to-rule" amounted to a strike that has been embarked upon without recourse to the dispute resolution procedures provided for in the Labour Act.

It further reminded the GMA that its members provided health and hospital services, which according to regulation 20(c) of LI 1833, were essential services and were therefore prohibited from resorting to a strike as any such strike could result in the loss of life and pose danger to public health and safety. 26 May 09