Kofi Asamoah
About 4,000 dock workers of the Ghana Dock Labour Company (GDCL) at the Tema and Takoradi Ports are at their wits end and are accusing their trade union representatives, the Maritime and Dockworkers Union (MDU), of misappropriating their welfare funds.
Their agitation stems from the fact the MDU was allegedly channelling their welfare funds into expenses that did not relate in any way to the welfare of the dock workers.
DAILY GUIDE gathered that the funds, which have accumulated for over a year, were being used to organize conferences and seminars. “These funds meant for the welfare of the workers have been depleted completely”, a visibly angry worker told DAILY GUIDE on condition of anonymity.
According to the dock workers, they had mounted several protests and demonstrations to compel the MDU to refund the misappropriated funds, but all efforts had proven futile.
DAILY GUIDE gathered that in May 2010, the aggrieved workers embarked on a demonstration and subsequently sent a resolution to the National Labour Commission (NLC) and the Trades Union Congress (TUC), expressing their total loss of confidence in the MDU and its leadership.
The Board of Directors of the GDLC got wind of the impasse between its workers and their representatives at the labour union and recently commissioned an external auditor, Messrs Accounting Associates in Tema, to conduct audit investigations into the formation and management of the Welfare Fund.
The resultant audit established that large sums of monies had been misapplied and should be paid back.
When asked to produce invoices to all its transactions from 2003 to 2010, the MDU allegedly produced invoices covering only 2008 to 2010.
The workers initially gave the MDU a May 19 deadline to comply with the directives of the auditors or face their wrath. However, MDU has allegedly remained silent on the issue.
This non-compliance may just be an ingredient for a massive industrial strike at the country’s two main harbours, hinted the embattled workers.
These dock workers are allegedly planning to separate from the MDU and join a rival labour union, the National Union of Harbour Employees, which they believe would serve their purpose better.
These aggrieved dock workers are an integral part of all the activities at the nation’s main sea ports. These semi-skilled workers at the port have often been dogged by poor conditions of service.
By Raphael Adeniran
