President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has announced that he has put a freeze on salary increments for himself and his appointees this year.
This includes salary increments for the Vice President, Ministers of State and all other appointees of the Executive.
The President maintains that this is a way of appreciating the plight of Ghanaians in the wake of the negative economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Nana Akufo-Addo was speaking at a celebration to mark May Day in Accra.
“I have taken the decision to freeze salary increment for this year, 2021 for myself as president, the vice president, ministers, deputy ministers, and all appointees of the executive. It is our modest contribution to reduce the damage to our public revenue and to help hasten our nation’s recovery from the ravages of the pandemic,” he stated.
President Akufo-Addo also commended organized labour for what he termed the industrial peace prevailing in the country.
He added that the constant engagement between organized labour and government should continue for the betterment of the labour front.
Workers demand pay rise
Meanwhile, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) is asking the government to stop using COVID-19 as an excuse and review the salaries of workers upwards to help them deal with the recent economic hardships in the country.
Organized labour says recent fuel increments, coupled with the skyrocketing prices of goods and services, are taking a toll on the Ghanaian worker.
They pleaded with the government to review workers’ salaries, as well as taxes, to reduce their financial burden.
But the President assured that negotiations with the National Tripartite Committee working on establishing the minimum wage for 2021 has begun.
He said the government was working to ensure that no worker was worse off as it took measures to sustain the growth and fiscal stability that the country witnessed in the three years before the pandemic struck.
President Akufo-Addo urged organised labour to work with the government and embrace the many changes that would be adopted in the effort to rebuild and develop the economy post-COVID-19.
“This is the time for organised labour to be asking the hard questions and making sure it can cope with the new way of doing things,” he stressed
There must be an acceptance that the world has changed significantly and the right changes and skills required to survive must be adopted, the President said.
