Ghana Employers’ Association (GEA) explores, with ILO support, the cost and causes of rising industrial disputes in Ghana.
Considering that the rising level of industrial disputes could negatively impact the cost of production and productivity of enterprises and might be aggravated by tensions within enterprises resulting from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, GEA, with the support of the ILO Bureau for Employers' Activities (ACTEMP), conducted a survey to investigate the cost and underlying causes of the rising industrial disputes in the country and its effects.
1 November 2020
Ghana has a long history of industrial relations practice and established institutional and legal frameworks for overseeing the condition of the industrial relations environment. Procedures for resolving industrial disputes in Ghana are also well established (Labour Act 2003).
The Ghana Employers Association has over the years expressed concerns about the important number of complaints received by the National Labour Commission (NLC), which either or both parties could refer to if they are unable to settle the dispute within seven (7) days. Preliminary observations by GEA indicated that most of the complaints received by the Commission were right-based disputes such as unfair termination, summary dismissal, redundancy and issues on employees’ compensation. The observations also suggested that the industrial mechanisms were unable to address the grievances at the enterprise level.
The survey to investigate the cost and underlying causes of the rising industrial disputes in the country and its effects covered 441 enterprises representing an 80.2 percent response rate. Responses were also obtained from workers’organizations and the Labour Administration institutions.
The key findings of the surveys were presented in a meeting gathering representatives of the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations, the National Labour Commission, the National Tripartite Committee and workers’organizations on 28 October 2020.
75.5 % of surveyed enterprises indicated that collective bargaining and its related matters are the major cause of labour disputes in Ghana. 64% indicated that complaints regarding the terms and conditions of employment also account for the rising labour disputes. 69 % of the enterprises resorted to the National Labour Commission for the resolution of outstanding disputes. The majority of the enterprises (i.e. 87.4%) indicated that the rising labour disputes affect their productivity through reduced output per man-hour while 9% indicated increased unit labour costs. 41.18% of enterprises surveyed indicated loss of invaluable time during the dispute settlement process, which could have been used to expand production. From the perspective of unions, rising disputes affect their members ‘productivity through loss of man-hours used to resolve the disputes, depression and anxiety among others.
Through the survey, some recommended areas for sensitizing the social partners were proposed by the National Labour Commission and the Labour Department. Internal strategies deployed by some enterprises in resolving disputes at the workplace were also shared.
Based on the results of the survey, some key recommendations were made. The outcome of the study enables GEA to sensitize employers appropriately, undertake evidence-based advocacy as well as dialogue with the labour administration institutions and the trade unions to secure a peaceful industrial relations environment for the Ghanaian Labour market.
The full report produced by the Ghana Employers Association can be accessed here
The Ghana Employers Association has over the years expressed concerns about the important number of complaints received by the National Labour Commission (NLC), which either or both parties could refer to if they are unable to settle the dispute within seven (7) days. Preliminary observations by GEA indicated that most of the complaints received by the Commission were right-based disputes such as unfair termination, summary dismissal, redundancy and issues on employees’ compensation. The observations also suggested that the industrial mechanisms were unable to address the grievances at the enterprise level.
The survey to investigate the cost and underlying causes of the rising industrial disputes in the country and its effects covered 441 enterprises representing an 80.2 percent response rate. Responses were also obtained from workers’organizations and the Labour Administration institutions.
The key findings of the surveys were presented in a meeting gathering representatives of the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations, the National Labour Commission, the National Tripartite Committee and workers’organizations on 28 October 2020.
75.5 % of surveyed enterprises indicated that collective bargaining and its related matters are the major cause of labour disputes in Ghana. 64% indicated that complaints regarding the terms and conditions of employment also account for the rising labour disputes. 69 % of the enterprises resorted to the National Labour Commission for the resolution of outstanding disputes. The majority of the enterprises (i.e. 87.4%) indicated that the rising labour disputes affect their productivity through reduced output per man-hour while 9% indicated increased unit labour costs. 41.18% of enterprises surveyed indicated loss of invaluable time during the dispute settlement process, which could have been used to expand production. From the perspective of unions, rising disputes affect their members ‘productivity through loss of man-hours used to resolve the disputes, depression and anxiety among others.
Through the survey, some recommended areas for sensitizing the social partners were proposed by the National Labour Commission and the Labour Department. Internal strategies deployed by some enterprises in resolving disputes at the workplace were also shared.
Based on the results of the survey, some key recommendations were made. The outcome of the study enables GEA to sensitize employers appropriately, undertake evidence-based advocacy as well as dialogue with the labour administration institutions and the trade unions to secure a peaceful industrial relations environment for the Ghanaian Labour market.
The full report produced by the Ghana Employers Association can be accessed here