Ashanti Goldfields Workers Call Off Strike

ACCRA, Ghana (PANA) - Striking workers of the Ashanti Goldfields Company Limited have agreed to resume work immediately after a day-long meeting attended by management, workers, Trades Union Congress and government officials.

According to a Memorandum of Understanding they signed Monday night, within 72 hours of resumption of duty, the management and union would meet to re-negotiate.

It said the workers and management agreed to re-affirm their confidence in the negotiation process and to abide by the rules governing such practices.

The meeting of stakeholders to resolve the 11-day strike by workers of Ashanti Goldfields Company, at the Obuasi mine, came after the workers had refused to heed appeals by their leaders to resume work.

With biggest mines in Ghana, the company also owns mines in Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Guinea and Australia and is listed on the Ghana, New York, Toronto and London Stock Exchanges.

The management of the company last week said that Ghana lost 700,000 US dollars in export revenue every day the strike at the Obuasi mines continued.

The workers started the strike to press demands for a minimum monthly salary of the equivalent of 500 dollars from 132.

However, the company said wages of the workers had been indexed to the dollar.

Under this system, their wages had increased by 25 percent over the last two years, going up from 295,000 cedis 1 May, 1997 to 370,000 cedis in May.

In addition, in May 1998, the company paid a lump sum of 250,00 cedis to each of the Obuasi mine workers, which is equal to a 6-percent rise.

The latest package agreed with the Mine Workers' Union provides for further benefits equivalent to a 10-percent increase, the company said.

It said these include a lump sum payment of 317,500 cedis, compared with the average wage of 370,000 cedis, a life insurance scheme funded by the company which is equivalent to 3-percent rise in pay and "an aggressive bonus scheme which rewards productivity."

A typical underground worker at Obuasi can earn 900,000 cedis per month, including the basic wage and production bonus plus an annual production bonus of not less than 400,000 cedis.

The company said some employees have been given subsidised housing, medical benefits and scholarship schemes.