Asanka Pharmaceutical Company Limited manufactures several types of drug, and which drugs are supplied to many chemical stores in Kojokrom. The company is located very close to a gutter which is also used by the residents as a refuse dump. This gutter is never desilted resulting in the fact that a strong odour hangs around the premises of the company.
The equipment used in manufacturing the drugs are not only obsolete but also expose the workers of the company to injuries. The workers of the company have complained about the conditions under which they work, but the management of the company pays deaf ears to these complaints. Apart from the fact that the equipment used to manufacture the drugs created a problem for the workers, the company did not provide the necessary safety working gears to the workers.
When the complaints of the workers were not heeded for necessary remedies to be provided, they embarked on a sit-down strike. The management, therefore, summarily dismissed the leadership of the workers, saying that the leaders could not tell the management what to do in the running of the affairs of the company.
Required:
Explain whether the workers of the Asanka Pharmaceutical Company Limited were justified in embarking on the sit-down strike action. (10 marks)
View Solution
Under the Labour Act 2003 Act 651, it is the duty of employer to provide satisfactory safe and healthy conditions.
- Location of company very close to a big gutter/ undesilted gutter that emitted bad odour.
- The equipment was obsolete exposing the workers to injuries.
- The workers were not provided with protect clothing.
- Their complaints were ignored.
Not more than 2 Marks to be allotted for total of this area
Whether the workers were justified refer to section 159 below
- For strike to be legal, the Law under Section 159 stipulates two circumstances under which legal strike can occur.
- The first is where the parties fail to agree to refer the dispute to voluntary arbitration, and where the dispute remains unresolved at the end of the arbitration process, either party intending to take strike action or institute lockout, shall give written notice of this to the other party and the commission, within seven days after failure to agree to refer the dispute to voluntary arbitration or the termination of the proceedings.
- This means that the parties would have gone through negotiation and mediation, yet they failed to resolve the dispute and one party to the dispute does not want the matter to be referred to voluntary arbitration, or the parties are at voluntary arbitration, but the conduct of one party is stalling the process.
- It is under such a circumstance that a party intending to strike or institute lockout must give a written notice to the other party and the National Labour Commission. However, what has become the norm by some workers, workers organisations and associations is for them to issue press releases or press statements of their intention to embark on strike. In other instances, the NLC is only copied notice of strike. Such acts contravene the provisions for embarking on strike under the law.
- Again, such act prevents the commission to pro-actively intervene to have the issue resolved. Very often also, the strike action started before the commission was informed. Furthermore, the practice where workers write to state that if no action is taken within a specific period “we would advise ourselves” is not appropriate because advising “oneself is not a notice “to the commission. Where a party is aggrieved and intends to take action, that party should state clearly the reasons for dissatisfaction and officially report to the commission for redress.
- A notice of strike, therefore, must be properly served as required by the law. It is important to note that today’s practice of the industrial relations must be based on transparency, good faith and adherence to the Labour Act 2003, (Act 651).
- The parties failed to agree- refer the dispute to voluntary arbitration
2 Marks for bullet 2 otherwise 1 ½ Marks for each point. AND total of 8 Marks here.