Accra, September 27, 2017//-Hundreds of Metro Mass Transit drivers across the country have grounded buses of the company to protest what they say are poor working conditions and remuneration.
The drivers say efforts to get the management of the company to improve their working conditions have been fruitless as management is yet to respond to their letters on the issue.
On Tuesday morning the drivers abandoned their buses to converge at the company’s headquarters at Awudome in Accra where they blocked the road in front of their yard to push the management to intervene by improving their working conditions.
Some of the drivers who spoke to 3News questioned why the new Managing Director would request for a new V8 vehicle whereas the company already has one for the use of the MD.
According to them, such act of the MD is unjustifiable, especially so when about 500 broken buses of the company are yet to be fixed by the management. One of the drivers who gave his name only as Godwin said office staff of the company were being paid risk allowances whereas drivers who risk their lives and are always on the field, are denied such allowance.
Again, he said, drivers are paid a paltry GHC10 as sleep over allowance per night; an amount he said is nothing to write home about.
Another driver who spoke on condition of anonymity said drivers of the company do not enjoy any form of medical insurance from the company, indicating they take care of their own medical expenditure whenever they seek medical care.
“Our work is demanding; we get to work at 3:00am and close at 8:00pm daily and when we get sick and go to hospital, we don’t get medical facility to take care of our bills,” the driver claimed. The driver added: “Because of that a lot of drivers who do not get money to go to hospital have been dying by the day”.
3news.com
