The Vice President of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) branch of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), Dr Bernard Tutu Boahene, has accused the leadership of the Trades Union Congress (Ghana) (TUC) of betraying organised labour in the negotiation with the government on matters pertaining to galamsey.
His comments come after the Deputy General Secretary of TUC, Dr Kwabena Nyarko Otoo, criticized the government for failing to honour key agreements inked last year to end illegal mining and save Ghana's water bodies.
Dr Boahene, speaking on the Joy Midday News, said UTAG initially joined forces with TUC and other labour unions to seek a collective industrial action to put pressure on the government.
However, in his address, TUC leadership later backed out of the collective agreement, hence leaving UTAG to continue alone.
"We felt a kind of betrayal on the part of the TUC leadership," Dr Boahene said.
"UTAG alone wouldn't have given us that strength, so we joined the organised labour. But when the TUC called off their strike, we had no choice than to continue with ours."
He explained that UTAG went through its internal processes to distance itself from TUC's decision and proceed with its planned strike action.
"It's not as if we had a initial interaction with government and reversed our decision. If you remember, TUC even cancelled their strike when UTAG was still on strike," he went on to add.
The stalemate points to widening cracks within organised labour regarding how to interact with the government, especially on issues related to conditions of service and broader national concerns like illegal mining.