Human Resource (HR) Managers have been urged to protect the rights of workers to prevent conflicts from arising in the workplace.
According to Mr. Edward Kareweh, General Secretary for General Agriculture Workers Union (GAWU) of TUC, “the labour law as well as the Constitution spells out the rights of the employees and the processes to which they can be protected.”
In an interview with ADR Daily, he stated that “HR practitioners must analyze the details of employment contracts to ensure that they are in conformity with the labour laws which seeks to protect both employers and employees.
In addition, he noted that HR Managers have an obligation of protecting the rights of workers, saying situations where HR Managers appear to be working against ordinary workers in favour of management only creates tension at the workplace.
Section 12 (b) of the Labour Act 2003 (Act 651) states that, “a contract of employment shall express in clear terms the rights and obligations of the parties.”
“Taking for instance the Ridge hospital scenario, the court case could have been avoided if the HR management had done its job effectively. The HR Manager is the intermediary between management and workers. If management takes a decision, it is the job of the HR Manager to brief the employees on the decision of the management and to transfer feedback to them,” he said.
He advised, “HR Managers should be well versed in the labour laws and Article 24 and 36 of the Constitution, which focuses on the rights of the worker, saying it would enable them to promote a mutual understanding of the rights of both the employer and employee for enhanced workplace cooperation.
“It is in the best interest of the company that a mutually beneficial relationship is maintained between management and the workforce,” Mr. Kareweh stressed.
By: Fred Gadese-Mensah /adrdaily.com
