GRACE OWUSU & 4 OTHERS vs. SIGHTSAVERS INTERNATIONAL [2011]DLNLC7622

Date	2011-07-21
Suit No.
Citation No.	[2011]DLNLC7622

[2011]DLNLC7622
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >GRACE OWUSU
&amp; 4 OTHERS<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>SIGHTSAVERS
INTERNATIONAL<o:p></o:p>[NLC]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:31.0pt 31.0pt 0cm 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">

</div>FOR THE COMMISSON: <o:p></o:p>PAUL
OSEI-MENSAH<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Courier New&quot;;
mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Courier New&quot;;color:#626200"> (MEMBER
NLC)<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

DECISION <o:p></o:p>

</div>THE CASE OF THE PARTIES <o:p></o:p>On 8th March, 2011 Awonor Law Consultancy presented a petition to the
Commission on behalf of 5 ex workers Grace Owusu-Asare, Vincent Kumah, Simone
Friese Amegashie, Olivia Samid and Alex Frempong Tabi for the Commission's intervention
in a case of wrongful or unfair dismissal, invoking the provision of Section
139 (1) (a) of Act 651. The case of the Petitioners is that on 14th
February, 2011 the Respondent informed the Petitioners that it has decided to
close down its Regional Office in Accra which will consequently render all
positions in the Regional Office redundant on the 15th of April, 2011. Respondent's management met with the Petitioners
individually where they were handed 2
letters which notified them of the redundancy and to offer a redundancy pay of one month's salary for every year served. <o:p></o:p>The Petitioners being
dissatisfied, requested for a meeting at which issues such as complying with the procedure prescribed for
redundancy in Act 651 and notifying Petitioners of that time table for
redundancy exercise as envisaged by Respondent was shorter than the period
prescribed by Section 65(1) Act 651 in that it
failed to notify the Chief Labour Officer and the Trade Union not later than 3
months of the redundancy exercise. Further, that contrary to Act 651 the Respondent failed to
negotiate with the affected workers to the effect that Petitioners did not know
the mechanism nor the basis at which Respondent arrived at the current redundancy pay being offered. <o:p></o:p>Further, the Petitioners claimed the Respondent failed to follow the precedent as set out in the Regional Office in 2005. By this, the staff hand book which</main>