THE management of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) has pledged to release GH¢250,000 to cover 18 months of accumulated fuel allowances to health workers, including junior doctors at the hospital, who are currently on strike.
The payment, to be made to all health workers entitled to fuel allowance, will commence by next Friday.
The accumulated fuel allowance for the health workers covers the last two months of 2006, the whole of 2007, the last quarter of 2008 and January to April this year.
Junior doctors at KATH started an industrial action on May 1, 2009, citing the non-revision of their salaries since 2006 and accumulated fuel allowances as their main grievances.
The release of the money follows a directive by the Minister of Health, Dr George Sipa –Adjah Yankey, to the Chief Executive of KATH, Dr Nsiah Asare, to pay in full all accumulated fuel allowances for the heath workers from 2006 to date.
The minister’s directive asked the management of KATH and all other hospitals in the country who owe health workers any outstanding fuel allowances to arrange to pay within a week or face sanctions.
Dr Nsiah Asare told journalists and the Health Minister during a media briefing at KATH last Saturday, that the full payment of the accumulated fuel allowances would affect cash flow and other operational activities at the hospital. He added that nevertheless, management would comply fully with the directive.
He gave the assurance that the hospital would strive to render continuous service to its numerous clients.
Following the strike by the junior doctors, the Health Minister paid a surprise visit to KATH on Saturday to interact with the hospital authorities and the leadership of the junior doctors in an effort to get them to call off the strike and resume duty.
He assured them of collaboration between the ministry, hospital management and other agencies to find a lasting solution to the problems of the doctors.
Dr Nsiah Asare pointed out that before the doctors embarked on the strike, the hospital had already paid the fuel allowances for the first three quarters of 2008 and arrangement had already been made to pay the remaining quarter this week.
He said the hospital had also paid 10 months of the allowances for 2006, indicating that his administration was on course to paying the outstanding fuel allowances by the end of June 2009.
He, therefore, wondered why the junior doctors cited the outstanding fuel allowances as part of their reasons for embarking on the strike.
Dr Nsiah said the hospital stopped the payment of fuel allowances at the onset of the payment of the Health Sector Salary (HSS) but later restored payment after negotiations between the Ministry of Health, the Agencies and the Ghana Medical Association GMA).
“That explains the reason for the outstanding arrears for the second half of 2006 and 2007,” he stressed.
Dr Yankey gave the assurance that the non-revision of salaries since 2006 and the accumulated fuel allowances, issues which led to the industrial action by the junior doctors, would receive prompt attention by the government.
“Any head who refuses to comply with this directive would be sanctioned accordingly. Those who have no money and have difficulties in the payment should immediately negotiate on how to pay to enhance smooth operations at the health facilities,” he stressed.
Dr Yankey said his ministry was addressing the problem of stalled salary negotiations for health workers, pointing out that the Single Spine Salary Structure for the health workers which was proposed by the previous government had not been implemented.
He explained that some distortions had been detected in the proposed salary structure and so the government would consult with the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) within the next few days to address the anomalies before its implementation.
Dr Yankey expressed concern about the industrial action of the junior doctors, and said they did not serve notice of their intention to embark on such action.
He said although the government inherited the salary problems of the health workers, it had been in constant touch with the leadership of the GMA to find how best to address the problem as soon as practicable.
Later, at a meeting with the junior doctors, their leaders agreed to call off their industrial action and resume work today after a general meeting of members yesterday.
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