GMWU Cries Foul Over Mine Workers’ Exploitation

The Ghana Mine Workers’ Union (GMWU), part of the Trades Union Congress (TUC-Ghana), has expressed deep concerns regarding the exploitation of mine workers by labor brokers, in partnership with certain mining companies, particularly Chinese-owned firms. The GMWU highlighted during a peaceful demonstration in Accra that professional Ghanaian mine workers, including engineers, geologists, and metallurgists, are facing exploitative conditions and being employed under arrangements that constitute disguised labor.

This issue emerged following a written petition to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, signed by GMWU General Secretary Abdul-Moomin Gbana. The petition detailed the union's apprehension over the increasing division of mining operations via contract mining and outsourcing, often framed as a means to boost local content.

The union argued that this shift has led to a transition from stable, permanent jobs to temporary, casual, and precarious employment forms, diminishing worker protection, increasing job insecurity, and exposing employees to higher risks of workplace accidents. Moreover, the GMWU reported a spike in violations of workers' and trade union rights, a reduction in collective bargaining coverage, and fluctuations in income and pensions.

Despite not opposing local content policies or local business participation in mining, the GMWU strictly opposes any policy that transfers wealth from workers to contractors, undermines social protection, and violates workers' rights. The union emphasized that local content policies should offer genuine opportunities for Ghanaians and should not be used to enrich a select few at the expense of workers who risk their lives to extract the country's mineral wealth.

The GMWU is now urging the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to take immediate action to halt and reverse the increase in precarious employment within the mining sector. They called for aligning national mineral policies with decent work standards and implementing strict regulatory measures to tackle fixed-term contracts, casualization, disguised employment, hazardous working conditions, and exploitative outsourcing.

Furthermore, the union requested the creation of a permanent Government-Employers-Labor Forum on mining-sector policy to ensure that workers' concerns and perspectives are considered in crucial decisions impacting the industry. The GMWU believes such a forum would foster a more sustainable mining sector where economic growth, local participation, investment, and workers' rights are balanced.