Definition of Labour Laws

The cambridge dictionary defines labour laws as 'laws that deal with the legal rights of working people
and the organizations they work for'.

Also, the collins dictionary defines labour laws as 'those areas of law which appertain to the relationship
between employers and employees and between employers and trade unions'.

The primary law and regulations that govern labour laws and employment relationships in Ghana are the
Labour Act 2003 (Act 651) and the Labour Regulations. The Labour Act consolidates all laws relating to
employment. The act applies to all workers and employers, excluding those in the armed forces, the
police service, the prison service and ecurities intelligence agencies.

The act refers to three categories of workers, namely permanent workers, tmporary workers; and casual
workers.

Labour Laws Guiding Minimum Wage

The national daily minimum wage is set by the National Tripartite Committee, headed by the Minister for
Employment & Social Welfare, for all workers except the Armed Forces, the Police Service, the Prison
Service and the Security and Intelligence Agencies specified under the Security and Intelligence Agencies
Act.

The current minimum wage in Ghana in 2023 stands at 14.88 cedis against GHc 13.53, which workers
were paid in 2022. The National Tripartite Committee (NTC) deemed it fit to review the wage as part of
its effort to commemorate workers and their achievements.

Working Hours

According to the Labour Act, the maximum is set at 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week. Workers have the
right to a continuous daily rest period of not less than 12 hours between two consecutive working days
and a weekly rest period of 48 consecutive hours in every 7 days of normal working hours.

Overtime

Subject to subsections (2) and (3), where a worker in an undertaking works after the hours of work fixed
by the rules of that undertaking, the additional hours done is garded as overtime work. also a worker is
not required to do overtime work unless the undertaking has fixed rates of pay for overtime work.

REGULAR PAY

According to the Labour Act 2003, remuneration includes the basic or minimum wage or salary and any
additional allowances payable directly or indirectly by the employer to the worker on account of the
worker’s employment.
The Labour Act regulates the payment of wages and requires that wages be paid in legal tender to all
classes of workers. Law requires the employer to make timely payment of remuneration to the workers.
Monthly payment is made to the worker employed on monthly basis and weekly payment to those
employed on weekly basis. Labour Act allows in-kind payment of wages as the term "full pay" means the
worker’s normal remuneration, without overtime payment, including the cash equivalent of any
remuneration in kind.

Contract of Employment

Employment contract is described as a contract between an employer and employee in which the terms
and conditions of the employment are contained. A contract of employment shall express in clear terms
the rights and obligations of the parties.

allnew employees shall be given an employment offer in writing, consistent with the provisions of the
Collective Bargaining Agreement, which when accepted by the employee, forms the basis of the
employment contract.

The employment letter will clearly state, among other things, the following:

Job Title

Job Description

Job Grade

Reporting lines and department

Job location

Salary

Effective Date

Probation Period

Three basic types of contracts exist: permanent employment ( Continuous until 60 yrs) Casual
Employment (seasonal and intermittent work for not more than six months) and temporary employment
(project based with fixed duration).

it should be noted that There is no explicit provision in the Labour Act about maximum duration of
probation period. The Labour Act refers to a "reasonable duration determined in advance". Probationary
period and conditions of probation are generally provided in collective agreements. Where, as a
condition for the engagement of an employee, a contract of employment requires probation, the
employment contract has to specify the duration of the probation for the employee.

Sources: § 66(b) & 98(d) of the Labour Act 2003 (Act 651); Regulation 5 of Labour Regulations 2007 (LI
1833).
MEDICAL SCREENING AND FITNESS

1. All appointments shall be subject to employee being declared by a company-designated medical

officer to be medically fit for the job for which a person is being engaged.

2. All or designated employees may once a year be subject to medical screening to determine whether
their state of health will permit them to perform their duties safely and effectively.

3. Where the company has reason to suspect that an employee is under the influence of alcohol or a
narcotic substance, management in conjunction with the PMSU representatives and the appropriate
health authorities may conduct a drug and alcohol test on said employee.

4. Results of each employee's medical examination shall be kept confidential. Each employee however
has a right to access his own medical report

RECRUITMENT

The Companies referred to believe in equal opportunities therefore recruitment of persons for any job
within the companies will be based on competence and willingness to work.

SECURITY

Employment shall be offered to an applicant subject to the new Employee passing a security check,
which may be conducted by the company. Such security checks may cover all matters, which are relevant
to an applicant's employment with the Company.

GROUNDS FOR TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT

The Labour law has provided the following lawful grounds for termination of an employment contract:

Mutual agreement between the employer and the employee;

upon the death of the employee before the expiration of the period of employment

If the worker is found on medical examination to be unfit for employment;

If the worker is unable to carry out his or her work due to:

sickness or accident; or

the incompetence of the worker; or

proven misconduct of the worker.

TERMINATION WITHOUT REASON

There is a lot of confusion about the legal implication of termination of employment contract without a
reason. It had been decided in several cases, and before the enactment of the Labour Law, that an
employment contract can be terminated by the Employer anytime without given a reason for the
termination.

This position overtime has changed after the enactment of the labour law.

FAIR AND UNFAIR TERMINATION

Under the labour law, upon termination of an employment contract, the employer may be called upon to
prove to the satisfaction of the court or the labour commission that the termination was fair. The
termination can be deemed to be unfair termination when the employer, when called upon, is not able
to prove that the termination was fair.

The labour law defines fair termination as termination by the employer on any of the following grounds:

that the worker is incompetent or lacks the qualification in relation to the work for which the worker is
employed;

the proven misconduct of the worker;

redundancy under section 65;

On the basis of the above, an employer who terminates an employment contract without given reason
may be called upon to prove that the termination was fair. However, if the employer is unable to prove
same, the termination may be deemed to be an unfair termination.

It is therefore imperative that grounds for termination of employment contract should be streamlined in
line with the labour laws of Ghana to limit any potential of employment dispute.

In summary, termination of an employment contract in Ghana may be deemed to be lawful and fair if
the termination is based on one of the following grounds:

Incompetence of the employee.

Redundancy of the employee

Mutual termination

Ill health of the employee

Proven misconduct of the employee

Death of the employee

general conditions of employment

Rest Day and Public Holidays

All employees must be given at least 2 rest days (48 hours) for every seven days of normal working hours
preferably a Saturday and Sunday.

Employees are entitled to paid public holidays in Ghana. When a public holiday falls on a rest day,
employees shall be entitled to the next day off in compensation thereof. There’re 13 public holidays in
Ghana: New Year’s Day Constitution Day Independence Day Good Friday Easter Monday May Day
(Workers’ Day) Eid-Ul-Fitr Eid-Ul-Adha Founders’ Day Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Day Farmer’s Day
Christmas Day Boxing Day

labour laws guiding maternity leave

Female workers are entitled to 12 weeks (84 days) of maternity leave with full pay. Pregnant worker has
to provide medical certificate issued by a medical practitioner or mid- wife, indicating the expected date
of her confinement. The maternity leave can be extended by two additional weeks in case of caesarean
delivery/abnormal birth or twin (or more) births. Extended leave are granted in case of illness due to
pregnancy or confinement, certified by the medical practitioner.

The laws of Ghana do not set a cap on how many times a woman is eligible for maternity leave;they have
been established to provide a reference point for employees to know what rights are protected by the
state and use all means to seek redress in the event that their rights are being infringed upon.

Annual Leave

Employees who have completed 12 months of consecutive service with an employer are entitled to the
following days of annual leave.

The employee is entitled to take all the full 15 days without interruption if he/she give advance notice of
30 days before the commencement of the leave. The employee must be allowed to take his/her annual
leave in two parts.

Sick Leave

Employees are entitled to sick leave if they must produce a medical certificate issued by a medical
practitioner or doctor. The Act is silent on the maximum number of days of sick leave that an employee
is entitled to.

N.B. it should be noted that There are no statutory laws regarding paternity leave as well as parental
leave.

labour laws guiding statutory contributions

Social security contributions

The social security contribution scheme is structured into three tiers. The first two require mandatory
contributions; however, the last one is voluntary.

Under the first two tiers, the employee is required to contribute 5.5% while the employer contributes
13%. Of the total contribution of 18.5%, 13.5% is contributed to the first tier and 5% to the second tier
schemes. These contributions are deductible for tax purposes and are tax free for both the employer and
the employee.

Under the third tier, there are no restrictions on the contributions made to the fund. However,
contributions made by an employer and employee of up to 16.5% are exempt from tax on both the
employer and the employee to the extent of their respective contributions to an approved fund
manager. All contributions in excess of 16.5% are taxable on the employee or employer or both.

N.B

Expatriates, unless exempt, are required to contribute to the mandatory social security schemes.
However, expatriate employees of contractors and sub-contractors (of the upstream petroleum industry)
are not required to participate in any insurance, compensation, or other employee or social benefit
programmes established in Ghana.

redundancy

Redundancy may occur when an employer contemplates the introduction of a major change in
production, programme, organisation, structure or technology of an undertaking that is likely to entail
terminations of employment of workers in the industry. The law provides that where an employer
contemplates that the introduction of major changes in production, programme, organization, structure
or technology of an undertaking that are likely to entail terminations of employment of workers in the
undertaking, that employer is mandated under Act 651 to submit in writing to the Chief Labour Officer,
all relevant information including the reasons for any termination, the number and categories of workers
likely to be affected and the period within which any termination is to be carried out; as well as to
consult the trade union concerned on measures to be taken to avert or minimize the termination as well
as measures to mitigate the adverse effects of any terminations on the workers concerned such as
finding alternative employment.

Additionally, where an employment is closed down or undergoes an amalgamation and that

arrangement is likely to sever relationships between a worker and an employer immediately before the
close down and this is likely to result in the worker being unemployed or suffering a diminution in the
terms and conditions of employment, that worker is entitled to be paid compensation which is known as
the redundancy pay.

The amount of compensation or redundancy pay is subject to negotiation between the employer and
the worker on the one hand and the trade union or the worker on the other hand. Any dispute arising
from the amount of redundancy pay and the terms and conditions of the payment may be referred to
the Labour Commission and the decision of the Labour Commission shall be final.

ywuyep@whytecleon.com