.jpg)
MLGWUI 2025 May Day Theme: “Revolutionising Health and Safety: The Role of AI and Digitalisation in Labour Migration and Migrant Workers’ Education for Decent Work”
The Migrant Labour General Workers’ Union International with its’ education-training-legal-counselling bureau Finnish-French Education Resource Centre (MLGWUI-FFERC) wishes all Migrant Workers and members of their families home and abroad a Peaceful Commemorative 2025 May Day as international workers day globally.
MLGWUI-FFERC bureau urges all Migrant Workers, passionate people, general public, ministries, migration agencies, missions, consulates, embassies, religious bodies and international communities to observe A Minute Silence for our beloved late Mrs Joyce Sarkodie, a Migrant Domestic Worker who passed on in Saudi Arabia on 10th February, 2025 and MLGWUI facilitated repatriation of the remain coffin to the bereaved family in Ghana on 18th March, 2025. Burial and Funeral ceremony held on 4th, 5th and 6th April, 2025 at Namong, near Offinso in Ashanti Region.
Migrant Labour General Workers’ Union International is a humanitarian and labour migration organisation promoting Access to Labour Justice for Migrant Workers home and abroad by ensuring decent work, investigating grievances, negotiating conditions of services, grievances, rescuing victimised, kidnapping, imprisoned migrant workers, facilitating safe repatriation of vulnerable, sick to their countries of destination/abode/hometowns as well facilitating their reintegration with education and capacity building, business coaching training sessions with support for their livelihoods.
Apart from previous years’ matters, from March, 2024 to April, 2025 alone, MLGWUI-FFERC addressed or redressed all 135 received complaints in various forms of grievances redress. Out of said number, 39 are repatriated orderly and safely home while other grievances redressed by referral to new employers for continuing services. Current grievances in process despites unfair and unethical sending and receiving agents and host recruitment companies are delaying or refused further negotiations with their intentions not to seek exit returning visas but rather subjected them to daily severe abuses, imprisonment, and confiscation of travel documents especially passports of victimised migrant workers especially Domestic Migrant Workers in GCC states or Arab countries.
MLGWUI-FFERC is informing media, in Ghana and Africa that all seems Migrant Workers matters such as unfair recruitment practices by unfair or unethical private employment agents and agencies, unfair termination of employment contract, precarious nature of employment, mistreatment, abuse, exploitation etc are not much concerned by governments and authourities or some stakeholders in migration.
As part of 2025 May Day and on above challenges, MLGWUI-FFERC reiterates its commitments on Access to Labour Justice for Migrant Workers, demanding from the governments, heads of states, private employment agents/agencies and receiving recruitment companies on ethical recruitment practices as follows:
MLGWUI-FFERC urges all Africa governments and Heads of State as well as global stakeholders in labour migration to partner with or fully assist the MLGWUI-FFERC on addressing labour migration challenges and education awareness creation on Irregular Migration and Migrant Workers for their Decent Work;
Labour Migration is matter of choice, has no barrier or discrimination. So it should not be considered as only highest educated or skills workers or professional selection;
Governments and Heads of who initiated international employment for their citizens should avoid international labour migration recruitment discrimination offer which may just to favour skilled workers and or on partisan selection basis;
It is unfair for a nation offering international employment abroad to its citizens by discriminating its International Migrant Domestic Workers or/and Labourers whose services are essentially needed abroad.
Governments and Heads of Heads of State must educate public on how to apply initiated international employment selection;
MLGWUI-FFERC urges Governments and Heads of State lift ban of labour migration to GCC state and rather sign inclusive Bilateral Sectorial Migrant Workers Agreement or Migrant Domestic Workers for Decent Work and Protection as some countries have done especially in GCC states and other countries;
MLGWUI-FFERC appeals to Ghana current ruling government consider Returned Migrant Workers as priority citizens for ADWUMAWURA Initiatives in Ghana;
MLGWUI-FFERC is humbled, but urgently appeals to the President of the Republic of Ghana through its’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs to liaise with its’ new appointed Consulate-General/Consul in Saudi Arabia in Jeddah/Riyadh to ensure all End of Service Benefits the concerned Maharah Human Resource Company has transferred to the Embassy of Ghana in Saudi Arabia as well as MLGWUI-FFERC demanding of Death Insurance Benefits, Befitted Compensation, Evacuation of Deceased Personal Effects/Bag are sent to the bereaved as entitlements as MLGWUI-FFERC instructed the said company or the Embassy;
MLGWUI-FFERC inform the public look out where about and report to CID headquarters, the confessed suspect Mr Solomon Ahmed of Global Manpower Recruitment Agency, Accra who facilitated recruitment of Mrs. Joyce Sarkodie, Domestic Migrant Workers to Saudi Arabia
(now deceased) but the confessed suspect agent has been hidden since the death of the said Migrant Worker;
MLGWUI-FFERC urges all Ghanaian and African Host Agents abroad working companies in destination countries to immediately STOP encouraging their CEOs, Supervisors and Agents themselves who are abusing, beating and imprisoning their own Migrant Workers especially Domestic Migrant Workers by saying “no more human right organisations or lawyers in destination countries to defending unreasonable/unwarranted accusations of Migrant Workers due to President Trump regime;
MLGWUI-FFERC appeals to Western North Regional Minister, MDCEs, Assemblymen/women, Church Clergies and Mosque Imams and traditional leaders to invite the MLGWUI-FFERC for labour migration education. Because unfair recruiting agents targeted the region as current prone to human trafficking and modern slavery to GCC states according to received/ing complaints and recused rates by MLGWUI-FFERC;
Husbands should STOP sponsoring their wives to labour migration in GCC states where when facing abuse challenges their agents cannot rescue or refused to assist rescuing process;
Until the government of the Public of Ghana, Africa or other countries sign Bilateral/International Migrant Domestic Workers Protection Employment Agreement(s) with GCC states, MLGWUI-FFERC warns all Potential Migrant Workers especially Domestic Migrant Workers NOT accept employment offering by Agents to GCC states or other countries;
Potential Migrant Workers should sign Parental/Family-Agent Consent/Acceptance Agreement with Sending Agents before departure;
Potential Migrant Workers must ensure they have full of Names of Sending Agents, Pictures, Offices Location and Names of Destination Recruitment with full Address before departure;
Potential Migrant Workers should open Bank Accounts in their own countries before departure;
Potential Migrant Workers should seek pre-departure orientation counselling from MLGWUI-FFERC after gained employment offered abroad in order to avoid unfair recruitment practices by Sending Private Employment Agents/Agencies, Abuses by Destination Recruitment Companies, unwarranted accusation and imprisonment by employers and untimely death, deportation etc.
Dear Comrade Migrant Workers, Brothers and Sisters, enjoy the May Day commemoration with peace and love.
Almighty God/Allah Richly Bless and Protect Us All with Justice, Unity and Perseverance
DATED IN ACCRA, GHANA THE 29TH APRIL, 2025.
SIGNED
JUSTICE KAAKYIR BAAKO NTARMAH
(INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS PRACTITIONER IN LABOUR MIGRATION GOVERNACE)
GENERAL SECRETARY & HEAD OF EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
+233 0246253966 +233 0553970539
migrantlabourworkersunion.int@yahoo.com ffmrc.tu.edu@gmail.com