Employment Ministry inaugurates working group

The Ministry of Employment on Wednesday inaugurated an Employment Sector Working Group (ESWG) in Accra to create more job opportunities for the country and improve the world of work.

Mr Haruna Iddrisu, sector Minister said ESWG is necessary since the world issues of employment and underemployment both in the formal and informal sectors cannot be taken for granted due to the security implications for the individual and society in general.

He said the pillars on which decent work outcomes are anchored include the availability of employment, social protection, rights of workers and employers and social dialogue and tripartism.

He explained that, there are policy gaps on labour market specifically the inadequacy of corresponding employment data and productivity statistics, labour inspections regularity and effectiveness and occupational safety and health, employable skills, a large and virtually seamless informal sector that must be transitioned to formality and sustainable job creation gab which must be bridged.

He said the Ministry is putting measures in place to fully develop a well-integrated, web-based Labour Market Information Systems for the sector which would inform policy alternatives to the choices they make in skills training and education.

He added that, for the job market, this would also provide synergies for macro-economic decisions that would improve considerably the world of work in the country.

“It is also considered that existing viable Labour offices throughout the country, will be transformed into functional public employment centres to become indispensable linkages of available employable skills to meet the needs of industry,” he noted.

Mr Iddrisu said the sector has finalised a National Employment Policy, pending Cabinet approval to guide the sector which would be launched during the rescheduled National Job Summit in March 2015.

He also said plans are underway to finalise the National Occupational Safety and Health Policy with its draft bill at the Attorney General’s Department.

“We have also commenced plans to house the sector’s labour administration institutions in an Ultramodern Labour Office Complex as a one-stop shop complex under a Public Private Partnership arrangement”, he added.

Speaking on the complex issues of pension in the country, Mr Iddrisu said sections of the National Pension Regulatory Authority laws are being reviewed to conform to modern trends of pension administration which will reduce agitations on the labour front.

“It is my hope that the ESWG platform will become a formidable intersectoral think-tank that will help redirect and re-focus the desired sector outcomes. Also, I believe it will be desirable, as has often been the case, to develop common management arrangements to guide the conduct of our business.

For us to proceed to work together for common purpose towards the achievement of sector goals and objectives, it is my candid delights that we proceed on the principle of mutual trust and respect, transparency and accountability”, he said.

The sector Minister expressed appreciation to many organisations including the US Embassy, the British High Commission, the Netherlands Embassy, the Switzerland Embassy, the World Bank, Korea Embassy, and all the United Nation Agencies, the International Labour Organisation and the sector’s tripartite constituents for choosing to partner proactively with the ministry.