The Minister of Employment and Labour Relations, Mr Ignatius Baffour Awwuah, has said GH¢320 million was expended on health workers as part of the COVID-19 pandemic relief packages of the government. The intervention included the provision of personal protective equipment (PPE) on a regular basis, tax exemption and the provision of allowances for frontline health workers.
Those who were directly involved in surveillance, case management, laboratory and other related frontline services also received GH¢10.3 million life insurance package. Mr Awuah said the reliefs were provided in spite of fiscal constraints on the government to ensure that health sector workers were motivated to discharge their duties diligently to defeat the pandemic.
Conference
This was contained in a speech read on the minister’s behalf by the Chief Labour Officer of the ministry, Mr Eugene Korletey, at the 12th quadrennial national delegates conference of the Health Workers Union (HSWU) of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Tamale last Friday.
It was on the theme: “Delivering quality public health service in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of the union”.
Mr Awuah applauded all health workers for their diverse roles in dealing with the pandemic and related issues across the country.
“On behalf of the President and the government, permit me to express gratitude to you for your immense contribution to the fight against COVID-19 and your continuous collaboration towards maintaining a stable labour front,” he said.