Management of Mantrac Ghana is said to be frustrating its employees who want to finally pull out from the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU) last year to join the Ghana Mine Workers Union (GMWU).

Some of the affected workers, who disclosed this to BUSINESS GUIDE on condition of anonymity in an interview yesterday said: “They are preventing us from moving to a union of our choice, which is (GMWU). And so they have told some of the staff that if we still insist on moving, they will effect retrenchment and target those who are leading this cause. But plainly, this is an attempt to make us cower.”

The appointments of 70 workers were terminated by the company on 25th August, 2016 due to the same issue.

The workers, who have resolved to join GMWU, said they were shocked to discover that management of Mantrac still was opposed to plans to join GMWU, a union they had procedurally joined.

According to the workers, management’s imposition of ICU on them was an infringement of the rights of employees and also an affront to the Labour laws of Ghana.

The source said 70 victims, who were sacked were reinstated and made to reapply for the same positions they held prior to their dismissal.

They were also made to sign a bond not to embark on illegal strike for six months as a requirement for their reinstatement.

After deliberating on the issue on 14th December, 2016, the Labour Commission asked the concerned workers to go and rewrite their resignation letters from the ICU so the Commission would present the letters to the ICU. Three months are expected to elapse before any feedback would be received.

“We have been reliably informed by one management staff that Mantrac says that if we go ahead and resubmit the withdrawal forms of leaving ICU again, which was instructed by the Labour Commission on 14th December, 2016, it will conduct retrenchment exercise.”

Meanwhile, two of the affected workers have said they will not go by the terms and conditions of management but resort to court to determine the issue.