..Graphic's MD's ?10m allowance infuriate workers. They reject 15% offer
When red flags are flying or workers are wearing red bands at work places two things readily come to mind. Either the workers are mourning the loss of a colleague or that they have embarked on an industrial action.

Over the last two weeks, Public Agenda has been monitoring the unusual hoisting of red flags at the refurbished premises of Graphic Communications Group, Ghana?s biggest newspaper publishing house. Enquiries drew mixed responses. While some staff explained that they were wearing red bands because of the death of some colleagues, others insist that there is a standoff between management and staff over salary increases, though the dispute is not the type that can disrupt production.

Management and staff, especially the journalists are locked in negotiations over the percentage of salary adjustment, which some staff say has been the source of disagreement for sometime. Information picked up by Public Agenda indicate that in 2001 management proposed a 100 percent salary increase for its members, which some staff say has been approved. The approval of top management salary thus fueled demands for general salary increases. It was learnt last week that management offered 15 percent increase across board for the rest of the staff, but the offer was rejected outright. Instead the workers are demanding 50 percent increase. Fifteen percent increase will amount to only ?100,000 increase on every one million cedis. And in a corporation where many senior journalists take home a mere ?1.2 million the proposed 15 percent increment has been described as a snub.

At the centre of the dispute is the huge disparity in the conditions of service between management and staff. One staff described the yawning gap in service conditions between management and staff ?as monkey dey work, man dey chop.?

A document detailing the incentives of top management personnel obtained by Public Agenda makes startling revelations of the disparities in service conditions. The proposal on ?Management Service Conditions? which approved in 2001 for instance offers the Chief Executive of the Company ?6 million housing allowance per month, ?5 million for the Deputy MD and Editor- In?Chief, ?4 million for the Editor of the Daily Graphic and ?3.5 million per month for all other members of the top management team.

The original housing allowance was ?800,000 for the MD and the editor-in-chief and ?600, 000 for the rest. Besides the housing allowance all top executives with a minimum of three year?s service are considered for a furniture loan of ?20 million to be deducted over a period of three years. They are also entitled to a housing loan ?befitting executives? at 10 percent interest per annum. In contrast, some of the workers, especially senior journalists say applications for housing loans have gone unheeded, making many of them to stay in dilapidated houses in some of the most unfriendly suburbs of Accra .

Equally startling is the amount allocated for car maintenance of the top executives. The Chief Executive takes ?2 million per month as car maintenance allowance, his deputy takes a ?1,600,000 while the Editor of Daily Graphic and all other executives take ?1,400,000 and ?1,300,000 respectively. Originally the car maintenance allowance was ?700,000 per month payable to only those who were using their own cars.

The management service conditions also makes allowances for ?Business Promotion?, of which the Chief Executive takes a cool ?2 million per month, while the Deputy MD and Editor of the Daily Graphic take ?1.5 million and ?1.2 million per month and ?1 million for the rest of the executives. The previous allowance were ?600,000 and ?500, 000 for the CEO and the executives respectively.

Further, the top management personnel enjoy a ?5 million annual provision for clothing. This incentive, according to the agreement is to make management dress decently. Then comes a flat monthly allowance of ?500,000 for ?Professional Allowance.? Agenda investigations have revealed that other staff receive just ?150,000 as clothing allowance per month. A rough estimate will put the total monthly allowance of the top executive members between ?6 million to ?10 million.

One incentive that has set many tongues wagging is the duty cars. According to the management services conditions ?duty cars shall be provided for all executive staff members who should have the option to purchase them after three years continuous use. Such duty cars are to be replaced after five years of use and this should apply only once.?

Sadly, only the Editors of the Daily Graphic and The Mirror are members of the top management. Even among the middle management only one senior journalist is a member. Dominating the middle level management are staff of the marketing and advertising, accounts, personnel and production departments. The rest of the Journalists, including the Associate Editors, the Chief Sub Editor, the Night Editor, the News Editor etc. who are the core of any newspaper set up are treated as ordinary staff.