The National Council of the Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) has resolved to declare an indefinite strike starting January 2, 2025.
This decision follows a December 23, 2024 communique where CETAG warned of the impending strike if the government fails to meet their demands by December 31, 2024.
CETAG expressed deep dissatisfaction with the government’s failure to honor their signed agreements and roadmaps related to the arbitration award issued by the National Labour Commission (NLC) on May 2, 2023.
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The association’s statement highlighted several key grievances:
- The government’s failure to migrate colleges of education teaching staff to the pay structure of affiliated universities within 20 months.
- Delays in paying the remaining 42 colleges a one-month basic salary for year-round work in 2022, as directed by the NLC.
- Non-payment of the top-up for book and research allowance for 2023 to staff of Akrokerri College of Education.
“Despite our good faith in calling off the strike on August 20, 2024, following appeals from the Vice President’s Office, the Minister for Employment, Labour Relations and Pensions, and the Minister of Education, the government has once again blatantly breached the agreement reached on August 19, 2024,” the statement revealed.
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CETAG noted that numerous attempts to engage with stakeholders, including the Ministry of Education, Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, have proven futile.
“Our efforts to resolve the matter amicably have not yielded any concrete outcomes,” CETAG lamented.
Meanwhile, the colleges of education are scheduled to reopen on January 13, 2025, for the new academic year.
CETAG has warned that the strike, once declared on January 2, 2025, will not be called off until all their demands are met.
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The association has given the government until December 31, 2024, to address their concerns, emphasizing that they are prepared to let the strike impact the 2024/2025 academic calendar until their issues are resolved as outlined in the NLC’s arbitration award.