Former workers of the Bogoso-Prestea Mine have accused Heath Goldfields Limited (HGL) of breaching Ghana’s Labour Act by failing to pay their outstanding entitlements nearly a year after taking over operations of the mine.
At a press conference held in Bogoso on Thursday, about fifty former employees, clad in red shirts, headbands, and armbands to symbolize their frustration and defiance, demanded immediate payment of all compensation owed them.
The group said their patience had worn thin following months of unfulfilled promises and shifting payment schedules despite several interventions from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
“Our patience has been stretched to its limit. The time for promises has passed,” the group stated in a press release dated October 31, 2025.
The Bogoso-Prestea Mine, once one of Ghana’s oldest and most productive gold mines, has been embroiled in a series of ownership and operational challenges in recent years.
In 2020, Future Global Resources (FGR) acquired the mine from Golden Star Resources but soon encountered severe financial and operational difficulties, leading to months of worker agitation.
Following these challenges, the government revoked FGR’s mining lease in late 2024 and reassigned it to Heath Goldfields Limited with the expectation that the new company would stabilize operations, clear outstanding debts, and restore the mine’s productivity.
However, the former workers say that nearly a year after the transition, those expectations have been dashed.
The ex-workers accused Heath Goldfields Limited of engaging in selective payments, unfair labour practices, and a lack of transparency regarding its financial obligations to staff.
They also alleged that gold bearing materials have been moved off site without proper accountability, a situation they described as a clear violation of operational procedures.
While acknowledging partial payments made to some employees following a May 2025 directive by the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, they insisted that most affected workers remain unpaid.
“Without the Minister’s intervention, not a single non-unionized worker would have received any compensation,” the group said. “But five months later, the company continues to defy both moral and legal obligations.”
According to the workers, Heath Goldfields Limited has failed to comply with provisions of the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651), which mandates employers to pay all entitlements including salaries, provident fund contributions, accrued leave, and severance packages upon termination.
They revealed that HGL initially committed in an internal memo dated August 27, 2025, to clear all arrears by September 2025.
However, another memo issued on October 6 extended the payment deadline to December a move the workers described as “a breach of faith and proof of the company’s financial instability.”
The group is calling on the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the Minerals Commission, and other relevant agencies to take urgent steps to resolve the issue.
Their demands include:
Immediate payment of all outstanding entitlements, including provident fund arrears, bonuses, and redundancy packages.
A comprehensive financial and operational audit of Heath Goldfields Limited to assess its capacity and compliance with the terms of its mining lease.
They warned that the situation has become unbearable for many of them, as some are now struggling to provide for their families after decades of dedicated service in the mining sector.
“The dignity, livelihoods, and rights of Ghanaian mine workers must not be sacrificed at the altar of empty assurances,” the statement concluded.
The challenges at Bogoso-Prestea highlight broader concerns within Ghana’s mining industry, where frequent ownership changes and weak regulatory oversight often leave workers vulnerable.
As tensions rise once again at one of the country’s historic gold mines, the former Bogoso-Prestea workers say they will continue to fight for justice until every outstanding entitlement is paid in full.
Contributor: Nana Fynn
