MWU unhappy with SGS

By: Masahudu Ankiilu Kunateh

The Ghana Mineworkers Union (GMWU) has taken serious note of the reaction by the Human Resource Manager of SGS Laboratory Services about the union’s call for investigations to be conducted into the laboratory’s unethical practices, resulting in the unfair termination of the appointment of a laboratory technician, who is also the Tema branch union chairman of the GMWU.
In a statement issued by the General Secretary of the GWMU, Mr. Prince William Ankrah, in Accra, the union fumed: “It is unfortunate that the HR Manager, instead of addressing the issues raised by the GMWU on the use of expired sodium/potassium standard reagents, and the unfair termination of employment, decided to put false information out in the media.”
The GMWU found out that the purpose of using the sodium/potassium standard reagent in question was to calibrate the machine (Flame Photometer) used for analysing the amount of sodium and potassium in client sample, for which the employee was in the process of doing before the employee, out of diligence, discovered that the chemical reagent he requested from the store meant for the calibration process had expired for almost a year, without the management of the lab knowing.
The statement explained that the reason for calibrating the machine before using it to analyse client sample or any other sample was to verify the authenticity of the machine, using an approved and unexpired calibration standard reagent in excellent condition.
This is because the standard reagent is the only authentic source for determining the authenticity and validity of the Flame Photometer Machine, before it is used for any analytical work.
The leadership of the GMWU, therefore, says it as strange how any Laboratory Technician could do a meaningful analysis under a situation where the standard required for this authentication of the machine had expired per the manufacturer’s label, and the Laboratory Manager will still insist on its use.
It is, therefore, strange why the managers of the SGS laboratory would seek to victimise the employee because he insisted that the right thing be done.
The issue of the employee’s entitlements, which the management said had been paid by the company, was a blatant lie, the union stated.
The union also revealed: “All checks by the GMWU from the employee’s bankers revealed that no such payment have been made on his behalf by his employers since June 2011 that the employee was arbitrarily dismissed from the company.”
All this while, the only amount, which came into the employee’s account during the period was about GH¢200, being pay for the number of days he worked before the unfair termination of his employment. This amount obviously, cannot be taken as the entitlement SGS management claimed it had paid.
The GMWU is strongly urging the management of SGS Laboratory Services to refrain from telling lies, and develop a strategic engagement mindset to forestall further embarrassment emanating from this arguably ugly press war, the statement stressed.

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