Asanko workers secure injunction against planned lay-off

The Ghana Mine Workers Union (GMWU) has secured interlocutory injunction to restrain Asanko Gold Ghana Limited from laying off some 299 permanent staff without payment of appropriate compensation due all affected employees.

A writ of summons signed on Friday, April 22 by an Amasaman High Court Order and intercepted by Akoma FM in Kumasi indicated that the Union’s General Secretary Abdul-Moomin Ghaba swore affidavit in support of the application for the injunction on Asanko Mines’ ongoing redundancy process without heeding to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed earlier to guide the laying off processes.

The Plaintiff, GMWU, is of the view that if the Defendant, Asanko Gold Ghana Limited, is not stopped, it will lay off all the affected workers without paying the redundancy benefits as was negotiated and agreed, and the rights of the Plaintiff and its members will be extinguished and the Plaintiff’s members will suffer irreparable and greater inconveniences.

The MOU dated February 10, 2022 was signed by the plaintiff and Defendant to finalize payments of redundancy compensations to the workers who are affected after the Defendant announced its decision in February to embark on redundancy exercise.

Under the MOU signed by both parties, Paragraphs one and 10 require that: “a total of 299 permanent employees will be severed effective 31st March 2022 and paid appropriate redundancy packages in line with their applicable Collective Agreements, inclusive of the one (1) month notice required”.

“Payment of appropriate compensation due all affected employees shall be paid on or before 31st March 2022.”

According to the Plaintiff, despite repeated protests and demands for the employers to strictly comply with the relevant provisions of the collective agreements and MoU, they failed, neglected and bent on violating the agreement without recourse to the plaintiff hence the interlocutory injunction.

The Plaintiff believes the conduct of the Defendant by laying off workers without paying their due compensations is in violation of the provision of the collective agreements and MoU.

Next court hearing is dated Monday, May 9.