Engage the services of graduate National Service personnel – NSS News
Ms Emma Hammond, Director of Deployment, National Service Secretariat (NSS), has called on members of the Ghana Employers’ Association (GEA) to engage the services of graduate National Service Personnel to improve upon their businesses.
She said the private sector being the engine of growth of the economy and other development projects in the country needed the skills and expertise of NSP to grow the businesses.
Ms Hammond said this at the GEA Council meeting held in Takoradi on Thursday.
The Council meeting, the first to be held outside Accra was attended by all the council members who deliberated on issues such as the National Daily Minimum Wage 2022, the NSS issues and challenges of employers, the 106th Session of the International Labor Conference, Data Protection Commission and Registration by Employers among others.
Ms Hammond pointed out that currently on 15 per cent of NSP were posted to the private sector and added that the figure would be increased to about 30 per cent next year.
She said many of the service personnel deployed to the private sector were sent to financial institutions, Insurance companies, Ghana Ports and Harbour Authority and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust and urged other GEA members to engage the services of NSP.
The Deployment Director said the secretariat usually post NSP to health, agriculture, agribusiness, urban sanitation and urban traffic management sectors, with education taking the highest number of personnel.
She explained that the engagement of NSP offered financial benefits to the private institutions, noting that ideally, NSP should take home a non-taxable allowance equal to 40 per cent of fresh graduates’ salary into the public Service of Ghana, this means private companies that engaged the services of NSP make about 60 per cent savings on recruitment.
“A good collaborative effort between the scheme and private sector stakeholders will therefore help enhance economic growth,” she added.
Ms Hammond however said some private user agencies request for NSP were not met due to late submission of request, inadequate NSP available with some of the qualifications desired and too many requirements.
She also mentioned protocols posting as another challenge, stressing that some NSP already posted to private user agencies were reposted to other organizations because “they know someone who knows someone and can help to post them to places they want”.
The practice, she said, did not only affect the user agencies which may not have the resources to absorb them, but NSS too having to repost such “rejected” personnel.
Mr Terence Darko, President of GEA and Managing Director of Mechanical LLOYD CO LTD, lauded the Scheme for its yeoman’s job which has helped to create job avenues for some unemployed graduates and appealed to the GEA members to engage the services of NSP.
He announced that GEA has successfully acquired a building permit and would soon start the construction of a new office block at Ridge in Accra.
Some of the participants the GNA spoke to expressed concern about the protocols posting, which they said normally affected their resources since they did not only pay allowances but also catered for office space and in some cases provide uniforms and skills training.
They also expressed concern about the 20 per cent service charges demanded by NSS and suggested that it should be reviewed downwards to enable them engage more service personnel.
GNA
Published by GWS Online GH : 2017-05-24
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