Tema The management of the Ghana Textiles Manufacturing Company (GTMC) says its decision to lay-off 200 workers is due to serious marketing problems and has nothing to do with the current union crisis in the company. The first batch of 10 workers were laid off last Wednesday while all the 800 workers of the spinning and weaving department, with the exception of those in the printing, have been sent home enbloc on leave. The exercise comes at a time when the Textiles and Garment and Leather Workers Union (TEGLEU) which the workers currently belong to and the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU) are scrambling for membership from the workers.
Colonel J.A. Dellor (rtd), administrative manager of GTMC, told the GNA in an interview that after a careful study of the deteriorating marketing situation, the management decided to take a number of cost saving measures including the reduction of the labour force to ensure the company’s viability. He said while a full piece of cloth imported from China and Japan is retailing at 26,000 cedis, GTMC’s print sell at 35,760 cedis which has slowed down sales. The company also has a large stock of cotton yarns and grey cloth which cannot be sold and this has compelled management to send the spinning and weaving department on block leave.
