Pay railway workers before resuming trains – TUC warns gov’t

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has warned the Ministry of Transport and the Ghana Railway Development Authority against operating the country’s trains without resolving outstanding labour issues with workers.

This comes after the Authority announced that passenger services on the Tema–Mpakadan corridor will resume on October 1, 2025.

Speaking to the press on Wednesday, September 24, 2025, in Accra, the Secretary-General of TUC Joshua Ansah urged the government to address the grievances of the Railway Workers Union of Ghana, whose members have gone 12 months without salaries, warning that running the service without the operator would be unsustainable and unfair to workers.

“This press conference is about Ghana Railway Company Limited, a company wholly owned by the government of Ghana. As you may already be aware, it’s been 12 solid months since the workers of the company were paid. Just imagine the situation of a worker and their families in today’s Ghana without a salary for 12 calendar months.

“The TUC would like to caution the Ministry of Transport and the Ghana Railway Development Authority to desist from the unholy attempt to run the trains without the operator. The Ghana Railway Company Limited, which is the operator, the ministry can’t purport to run the Mpakadan rail line and other lines without the operator. We will resist any attempt to sideline the Ghana Railway Company Limited,” he said

Chief Executive Officer of GRDA, Dr Frederick Appoh, on Wednesday, September 24, 2025, announced plans to resume train services along the Tema–Mpakadan corridor from October 1.

He indicated that challenges that had halted operations, including infrastructure defects and land encroachment, have been resolved.