GRIDCO Staff begin Strike, threaten Withdrawal of Emergency Services

Staff of the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCO) have declared a sit down strike over authorities’ failure to settle demands captured in their earlier petition. The strike will begin tomorrow, Wednesday, December 11, 2019 until further notice.

According to the staff, they delayed in embarking on a strike in anticipation of a response from the petitioned institution. Yet, the demands were ignored, necessitating their decision now.

“Having revised our initial date of sit down strike from December 4th to 10th in 2019 in anticipation of immediate response by GRIDCo management and institutions petitioned, which never materialized, we finally declare from Wednesday, December 11 the sit down strike until further notice”

In a press statement released on Tuesday, signed by the group’s chairman, Raphael Korbor, they spelt out that, as part of the indefinite sit down strike, the staff will withdraw “emergency services outside the normal working hours including weekends”. 

They will also picket at the GRIDCo head office in attempt to force the authorities to take desired actions as earlier demanded.

The staff of GRIDCo are demanding that the amount of GHC 250 million which President Akufo-Addo directed the finance minister to pay GRIDCo be paid as soon as possible. They also demanded the immediate payment of debts owed by VALCo, ECG, PDS and NEDCo to GRIDCo.

They asserted that, their demands are necessary to ensure the financial liberation of GRIDCo, hence failure to settle them will warrant continued agitation from the staff.

GRIDCo runs the National Interconnected Transmission System (NITS) which ensures the transmission of electricity from wholesale suppliers (generating companies) to bulk customers, which include the ECG, NEDCo among others.

Source: Jonas Danquah || ghananewsonline.com.gh