Pay policy reforms

The Minister for Manpower Youth and Employment, Nana Akomea, has revealed that Ministers of State take 21 million old Ghana cedis as their monthly pay.

Nana Akomea was responding to a question posed by a journalist at last week's meet-the-press series.

“Ministers, District Chief Executives (DCEs) and other political appointments take 21 million cedis in the old Ghana cedis, we take nothing more, and we are covered by article 71”, he said.

The press meeting was to shed light on efforts made by the government in the area of pay policy reforms.

The Minister of Public Sector Reforms, Mr. Samuel Owusu Agyei, who was the main speaker, said the government was committed to calls by workers and labour organizations for meaningful salaries.

This, he said, led to the organization of the two day stakeholders meeting in Accra on 3rd and 4th March 2008.

At that stakeholders' forum, which was a technical meeting on the new pay policy, the Minister said some recommendations proposed included “the placements on the single spine be done on the basis of job values and not the earnings of jobholders or incumbents…That equity be introduced into salary administration in the public services in line with the principle of equal pay for work of equal worth… that for the effective replacements all jobs in the public sector be graded.”

Mr. Owusu Agyei said at the moment 1,806 benchmark jobs have been graded.

“It is important that all the 8,000 jobs in the public services are graded before the placement exercise and the eventual implementation of the single spine,” he said.

The meeting, the Minister said, also recommended that the monetization of all or part of non-cash allowances provided to public servants should not form part of the current exercise of introducing the single spine pay policy.

“The modalities for monetization should however be discussed extensively with stake holders in order to reach an acceptable basis that could be implemented in the medium term”, he said.

He said the meeting recommended that the unions and associations should also take steps to sensitize their constituents about the current state of affairs relating to the new pay policy, “with some level of resourcing from government where necessary”.

These recommendations, the Public Sector Reforms Minister said, “are quite apt and far-reaching.”

He cautioned stakeholders that while they take care of their interest, they should balance these interests with the national interest for the sake of peace and harmony.

Mr. Owusu Agyei appealed to workers to put their shoulders to the wheel in the introduction of the new pay policy.

By doing so, he said, “the morale and productivity of public servants will be boosted up to deepen the nation's quest economic growth.”