Health Service Workers still out of work

Health Service Workers’ across the country have still not returned to work for what they say has been the government’s inability to review their conditions of service for close to five years now.

According to the workers, since the government has been adamant about their plight and refused to act on the agreed terms in improving their conditions of service they are not returning to work.

“It is not the wish of the union to cause industrial disharmony and disrupt the smooth delivery of health services, but the continuous disregard by the government to respond to our simple request has pushed us to the wall and this far,” the workers reiterated.

Speaking to Starr FM, the Northern Regional Chairman for Health Service Workers’ Union (HSWU), Raymond Amo revealed that heads of some hospitals think their absence would not cause any grave effect on the operation of health delivery.

He said the Hospital heads prefer using National Service Personnel and NABCO personnel who are not trained to work in their place.

“We are not retreating because this is not the first time we are asking for this and we are not the first to make these demands. People we are working with in the same system and chain are already enjoying it and we say we also deserve it. So we are actually not going back.

Mr. Amo said nothing will change our mind to return to work but was quick to add that “the day is still young. Maybe before the day ends we will hear something. When we hear something favourable, why not we are all Ghanaians, we will do the right thing.”

However, the Public Relations Officer for the Greater Accra Hospital, Juliana Haruna has called on the government to speed up negotiations with the hospital staff so they can resume work.

She said there are situations where nurses are engaged in cleaning aside their normal duties in order to have a conducive environment to work.

“The nurses are doing their work but the record staff are not at post. Nurses are taking vitals after which they refer clients to the consulting rooms but our record staff are not at post and this is due to the strike. This situation is really not helping and a big challenge to us and I believe it’s a challenge to the country as well.

“Whenever clients visit the hospital the first place they go to is the records where their details are taken before they continue with other processes. So we are pleading with the government to meet the leadership of the Union so we can have our staff back,” she told Starr FM.