The Mortuary Workers Association of Ghana (MOWAG) has warned the government, threatening to embark on a nationwide strike in November if the long-standing grievances of its members are not addressed.
The association, which represents the interests of mortuary workers across the country, is calling for urgent improvements in their working conditions, including better wages, a safer working environment, and the provision of essential personal protective equipment (PPE).
According to the association, these issues have persisted since 2019, with little to no action from the authorities to resolve them.
MOWAG’s General Secretary, Richard Kofi Jordan, in an interview with Citi News, expressed the association’s frustration with the government’s handling of their demands.
He accused the government of deliberately delaying the process by requesting unnecessary data from the association, a move that he believes is intended to stall negotiations and avoid addressing the workers’ core concerns.
Jordan explained that despite numerous efforts to engage with the government on these issues over the past several years, the mortuary workers are still working under deplorable conditions, which put both their health and safety at risk.
He emphasised that the government’s lack of responsiveness has left MOWAG members with no choice but to consider industrial action as a means of compelling the authorities to take their demands seriously.
“We cannot strike in the middle of the month. So we are planning towards another week. It could be the end of this month, it could be the first week of next month [November], whichever it is, we will communicate the same to the public and then you understand.
“As I speak to you, the government has demanded certain data from us and we feel that it is a way to delay the process. They demanded certain data from us, which we are providing. But that is not enough for us to say that we are not going to embark on our strike. We will surely strike if what we are asking for is not met within this month.”