The Ghana Trades Union Congress (TUC) has called on employers to grant leave to staff who are parents and need to stay home to care for their children until schools reopen.

This follows the closure of schools by the government in the outbreak of the Coronavirus in the country.

The Government has also been forced to place a ban on all public gatherings to prevent further spread of the disease while businesses and other workplaces continue to operate but observe safety procedures.

Ghana has so far recorded seven confirmed cases of COVID-19.

The TUC in a statement signed by its Secretary General, Yaw Baah on Monday, 16 March 2020 encouraged “all unions to work closely with their employers to put in place the necessary measures or arrangements to ensure that workers are fully protected from this deadly virus.”

The Union also urged “all employers to grant leave to workers who need to be home to care for their children until schools re-open. We would also like to appeal to employers to allow workers who can work from home to do so to minimise interactions at workplaces.”

The TUC also commended the government on efforts it is making to “protect all Ghanaians and foreign residents in the country” and drew its “attention to the prisons because we all know that our prisons are overcrowded.”