President Assures Of Living Wages

President J.A. Kufuor yesterday assured workers of the govern-ment’s continuous commitment to paying them living wages and urged them to work hard.

He pointed out however that it was only when the productivity of workers increased and the economy grew that the benefits could be rolled out to all.

President Kufuor gave the assurance when the outgoing Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Akwasi Adu-Amankwah called on him take leave of him.

Mr. Adu-Aman-kwah is leaving for Nairobi, Kenya, to assume duty as General-Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), an umbrella body of all trade union organisations in Africa.

The President said the government, has since 2001, consistently and steadily increased worker’s wages to demonstrate its true commitment to decent living standards for workers.

He said depending on the economy’s growth, government would extend the benefits to every sector of the country and added, 'our commitment to the people is undiluted.'

The president urged the TUC to prevail on its members 'to ensure higher productivity so that we can all enjoy the benefits.

'We are not a government that will take the workforce of Ghana for a ride,' he said.

On the international scene, President Kufuor noted that Africa was moving towards the realisation of a Union Government and urged the office of the ITUC to influence the various nations on the continent to work towards a common principle of good governance.

He asked Mr. Adu Amankwa to avoid being a leader by promoting the interest of workers alone but by generally talking for the betterment of humanity.

Earlier, Mr. Adu-Amankwa expressed his gratitude to the government for cooperating with the TUC under his leadership on a number of issues.

He said the TUC would continue to strive for better conditions of service for workers, adding that trade issues among African States would be of priority concern to him as he assumed his new role.

Mr. Adu-Amankwah appealed to government to accord Mr. Kofi Asamoah, Deputy Secretary General of the TUC, who would act in his absence, the same level of cooperation accorded him.