Last Tuesday 26th March 2019 the new Management of the Sierra Leone Ports Authority signed an agreement with the Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations and other key stakeholders including the Sierra Leone Labour Congress, The National Commission for Privatization, the Sierra Leone Ports Authority Senior Staff Association and the Sierra Leone Dock Workers Union to settle all outstanding payment due former and current SLPA employees inherited from the past administration.
The outstanding payment has been a historic matter spanning from 2011 when the past administration redundant workers without due process of redundancy, the Chairman of the Sierra Leone Ports Authority Board of Directors Manso Dumbuya told stakeholders during the signing of the agreement.
Manso Dumbuya said: “as a responsible Management under the New Direction, we thought it unfair to forge ahead without addressing this long outstanding issue.”
The new Management since their assumption in office six months ago pledged to settle all outstanding payment inherited from the past Management due former and current staff of the Authority, the General Manager of the Sierra Leone Ports Authority, Dr. Abdulai Fofana said.
“Upon assuming office few months ago the issue of staff outstanding redundancy payment was presented to the management. Being a consultative management who values its staff, we engaged stakeholders to look at the merit and demerit of the matter. We concluded that there were procedural errors in the whole exercise. The workers claim was genuine. We have agreed to settle the matter once and for all.”
The Minister of Labour and Industrial Relations , Mr. Adekule King said the signing of the agreement is a demonstration of the capabilities of not only his ministry but other stakeholders including the Port management, the National Commission of Privatization, the Sierra Leone Labour Congress and the unions to deliver. He called on workers to support New Direction of President Bio.
The new Management has restored staff confidence as one that is poised to better the lives and the livelihood of workers and the general staff in return is determined to provide the necessary support to management, the President of the Sierra Leone Ports Senior Staff Association Idrissa Mago Tarawallie assured.
