Allowance of GHC258 paid to sweepers is fair; they work part-time — Zoomlion
Waste management firm, Zoomlion Ghana Limited, has justified the GHS258 monthly allowance paid to sweepers engaged under its contract with the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), saying the amount is fair due to the part-time nature of the work.
The contract arrangement sees a total of GHS850 allocated per worker, but only GHS258 is paid directly to each sweeper, with the rest retained by Zoomlion for operational and administrative costs.
Appearing before Parliament’s Select Committee on Sanitation and Water Resources on Wednesday, April 23, the Chairman of the Jospong Group, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong said the GHS258 allowance is not a salary but a stipend for part-time work of between three to four hours a day.
“The contract states clearly that the agency shall pay an amount of GHS258 per month to each beneficiary. This is not a salary but an allowance for part-time work,” a Zoomlion representative told the committee.
The company further explained that the sweepers are not only compensated but also benefit from additional support such as health insurance, skills training, and career advancement opportunities within the Zoomlion system.
“We go beyond just paying the allowance. We provide them with health insurance and train some of them. Some have risen from riders to accountants in our company. We’ve even sent others to China for training,” he said.
Zoomlion also assured that discussions are ongoing with the YEA to explore possible upward adjustments to the allowance.
Addressing concerns about delayed payments, the Dr. Siaw Agyepong admitted that sweepers went unpaid last year due to government’s two-year arrears.
Meanwhile, investigative journalist and author Manasseh Azure Awuni has urged government not to renew its contract with waste management company Zoomlion Ghana Limited over its management of sweepers.
Manasseh argues that any official who signs the contract, which expired in September 2024, is either “a thief or a fool.”
