THE DELETERIOUS ATTITUDES OF PUBLIC SERVICE WORKERS

Columnist - Addotey Michael

The recent purported sale intentions of the electricity company of Ghana (ECG), upstretched competency and work attitude issues of civil servants and public service workers in Ghana. There have been several sales of government businesses to private organizations and Ghana Telecom, merchant bank and several businesses cannot be left out.

All these government businesses were sold because of its inefficiencies and losses, which affects the state of the economy. The government businesses are meant to yield profit to support the revenue quest of the country but not to drain the country’s financial resources without even proper accountability structures. Workers employed in the public sector and business contributes to the inefficiencies and losses of these businesses. Some workers report to work at 10 am and close by 2pm, exhibits horrendous customer services and tends not to discharge their assigned duties as they will do in their own businesses for higher productivity.

The notion carried by many that, its government’s work, therefore it’s everybody’s work, always tend to be the song on the lips of these workers. Because of these, many workers tend to exhibit lackadaisical behaviours which affect the performance of these government businesses, as the job securities assured in the government businesses also accounts for such negative attitudes. Government workers had never sat down to ponder on where the government businesses get money to pay their salaries and other employee incentives, even if the government has to borrow for those purposes. These are the inhuman and heartless attitudes of the workers employed in the government industries.

Recently, ECG workers embarked on strike actions to agitate against its sale. The question is, how were ECG workers’ attitude towards the efficiency of ECG? How were they feeling and working when the country was experiencing neck-breaking “DUMSOR”, collapsing businesses and jobs in the country? Obviously, they will be taking their monthly salaries and incentives by then, so they don’t care. Now that the government wants to sell out ECG in order to make it more efficient, workers are going on strikes to STOP IT, because they will be laid off by the new management and owners.  

The only way government businesses, will remain to be government businesses, is when government workers takes their work very serious and work towards the efficiency and productivity of the business but not for their selfish interest at the detriment of the country’s resources. Instead of going on strikes to STOP sales of government businesses, they should rather stop their negative attitudes towards work and make government businesses lucrative with their unique set of skills. If not, all government businesses will be sold to private organizations and workers will always lose their jobs!