Labour Commission intervenes in Teacher Unions, Fair Wages impasse

The National Labour Commission (NLC) has summoned the three striking teacher unions, as well as the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, to appear before it and address their disputes.

This follows a petition by the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission.

The two parties will meet with the Labour Commission on Tuesday, March 26, to discuss the issues at stake.

The Unions are concerned about the delay in addressing their conditions of service, the government’s lag in distributing laptop computers, and the Office of the Special Prosecutor’s freeze on the pay for some of its members.

The Unions are the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), and the Coalition of Concerned Teachers-Ghana (CCT-Ghana).

The Labour Commission has since ordered GNAT, NAGRAT, and CCT-Ghana to halt their industrial action, which began on March 20, 2024, saying that it violated Section 159 of Act 651 of the Labour Act.

“The Unions are hereby advised to stay any and/or all ongoing and any further intended action (s) and appear as scheduled,” the summon, signed by Dr Bernice Welbeck, the Director of Administration/ Human Resource, NLC stated.

Prior to the summons, the Fair Wages Commission offered an invitation to the Teacher Unions to return to the negotiating table on Thursday, March 21, to work out the matter.

“We’re committed, willing and open to engage, and we’ve demonstrated that by inviting them,” Mr Benjamin Arthur, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Fair Wages Commission said at a press briefing in Accra on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Education Service (GES) had instructed heads of Kindergartens, Primary, Junior, and Secondary schools not to close their institutions on Wednesday.

It asked parties to remain calm and informed them that the GES’s management was constantly watching the situation and would provide guidance on the matter.

Meanwhile, most schools visited by the Ghana News Agency on Thursday, within Teshie, Osu, and Accra Central, showed that the strike was in force, as many schoolchildren were seen playing during class hours.

According to the three Teacher Unions, the negotiation of the Collective Agreement following its expiration in 2023 was supposed to be concluded on or by February 29, 2024, but it remains to be done.