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09.02.2012 Feature Article

DOES CLOGSAG REALLY WORTH AN ASSOCIATION?

DOES CLOGSAG REALLY WORTH AN ASSOCIATION?
09.02.2012 LISTEN

A nation that does not recognize its heroes is not worth dying for; it is in this light that, I personally want to give 21 gun salutes to Kwame Alovi and group of executives who fought relentlessly to put premium on graduate teachers in the Republic of Ghana. It is during their term of office that Ghana government and Ghanaians in general placed premium on graduate teachers. I do strongly believe these executives were not captives of their own mindsets neither were they ignorant of the plight of their association members. NAGRAT has become a very powerful association at the labour front in Ghana because they made clear at that time they could not be taken for granted. This tells us the importance of an association.

The existence of a strong and recognized association is a pre-requisite to industrial peace. Associations provide advice and support to ensure that differences in opinions do not turn into major conflicts. In addition, the central function of it is to represent people at work. An association that should have played a critical role in representing its members is CLOGSAG. In Ghana, CLOGSAG is undoubtedly one of the largest public work associations. CLOGSAG deduct newly recruited civil servants dues without their consent yet workers do not complain.

However, it will be extremely difficult for members of CLOGSAG to pinpoint a single achievement of CLOGSAG as an association since it was established some years ago. Gradually, CLOGSAG has lost its vision and is now turning into a consortium for only salary negotiations. Even at that, they are performing poorly just for lack of a better word. Paid up members of CLOGSAG believe sincerely that apart from salary negotiations, CLOGSAG should also bargain for better conditions of service alike.

Surprisingly, CLOGSAG has even failed its membership tremendously even on the only thing it is noted for (salary negotiations). Leaders of CLOGSAG have turned into consultants for members. Members of CLOGSAG seek answers on these;

• Where is the chart for the migration of members onto the Single Spine Salary Structure?

• How did they evaluate individual but different duties of members?

• On what amount was the 20% increase in base salary calculated?

• How come graduates in the civil service enjoy remunerations lower than their contemporaries in the Education Service on a salary structure that is supposed to harmonize salaries?

• Are graduates in the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and Local Government agencies the same? (Thus Job specifications and demand; risks involved with field operations intertwine with administrative work the same as administrative work alone?).

• Does the new salary structure consider qualifications such as First degree, Masters and Doctor of Philosophy for promotion and not necessarily long service?

These and many questions hang around the neck of an association that is supposed to bargain on behalf of its members. The national executives of CLOGSAG have proven unequivocally clear that they are incompetent, very poor in communicating skills and are most probably selfish and unreliable but to say the least. How can you bargain for members and not communicate to even your regional and local executives alike the facts and figures of their benefits.

All that the thousands of silent disappointed CLOGSAG members are asking is that can CLOGSAG really be trusted to seek the welfare of its members? Why is CLOGSAG starving its members the facts and figures of their benefits? Is there the fear that if members get to know the facts and figures there will be an industrial strike that will clearly halt government machinery?

CLOGSAG should know there is a day coming and even close, when members shall rise to form new associations that are proactive, communicative, buoyant, assertive and competent like NAGRAT to seek the welfare of its members; and on that day, all members shall sing the song of Thomas Jefferson that” Equal Rights for all, privileges for none”

Richard Kwasi Bannor ([email protected])
Tel: 0243524843

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