[ 2015-01-30 ]

Bank of Ghana: Workers have no right to demand full disclosure of pension funds
The Bank of Ghana is asking an Industrial and
Labour Court to throw out a request by 12 labour
unions demanding full disclosure of their tier
two pension funds.

Lawyer for the bank, Samuel Cudjoe, told the court
on Thursday the unions do not have the power to
make such demands.

He argued the Bank of Ghana as a depository, is
only answerable to the employer that is,
Government, and therefore the workers have no such
powers to make that demand.

His comments appear to be the new twist to the
tale of the tier two pension tussle between the
labour unions and Government.

The unions have kicked against government's
appointment of a trustee to manage their tier two
pension funds.

In protest, the workers embarked on a strike which
saw hospitals and schools vacated for several
weeks.

It took a court action by Government to stop the
workers from continuing with the strike.

Apart from asking the court to declare the strike
as illegal, Government also prayed the court to
make a pronouncement on whether or not, as the
employer, it had the power to appoint trustees to
manage the tier two pension scheme.

The workers also appeared in court but with a
different strategy. They are dragging the Bank of
Ghana as well as the National Pensions Regulatory
Authority to appear before the court to answer
specific questions relating to their roles in the
management of the tier two pension scheme.

The workers’ tier two pension funds are lodged
temporarily at the Central Bank and the Labour
unions want to know exactly how much is lodged in
there, as they suspect that account to be empty.

They want the Bank of Ghana to disclose without
delay, the amount of money accrued to the tier two
pension account.

But the Bank of Ghana would have none of that.

Joy News' Fred Smith who was in court reported the
lawyer of Bank of Ghana as saying the workers had
no business dragging the Bank into the matter, let
alone to ask it to disclose the tier two pension
funds accrued to the Bank.

He said the unions are abusing the court process
by their attempt to drag them into the matter.

Justice Saeed Kwaku Gyan adjourned sitting to next
Monday, a time when lawyers for the unions will
make the case for the Central Bank and the NPRA to
be joined in the suit.

Dr. Justice Yankson, a member of the legal team of
the unions informed JoyNews the unions will make a
strong case on Monday for the Central Bank to be
joined to the suit.

Source - Joy News

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