Coca-Cola Bottling Company is laying off over 250 employees as part of efforts to enable it stay in business. The Company began the process today following the worsening effects of the current power crisis on its operations.
The announcement came as a sharp contrast to what the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Coca-Cola Company, Mr Muhtar Kent, had told Ghana’s Trade and Industry Minister, Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah when he visited the United States.
According to Mr Kent, Ghana was going to be one of the beneficiary countries for Coca-Cola’s ten-year expansion programme for Africa.
The General Secretary of the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union, Solomon Kotei said his outfit is inundated with redundancy letters from manufacturing companies.
“Most of the manufacturing companies and hospitality industries, in fact the overheads are becoming astronomical. The indications that we are getting almost every day is becoming disturbing,” he said.
This, he said has affected production levels of many companies. However, he said his office would be meeting management of the Coca-Cola Bottling Company to see how best the situation can be saved.
“The rate of unemployment, you know it better than I do and therefore if you are to do anything that will increase the unemployment situation we have to get to the blackboard to see what we can do to support the economy and including we the workers ourselves and to save the employers' investments.”
He warned the unemployment situation in the country could worsen if drastic measures are not taken to address the power crisis.
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