The University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) says its members will continue with their industrial action until all their demands are fulfilled by the government.
In a joint statement, all the local chapters of the union have asked their National Executive Council (NEC) to sustain the industrial action for the restoration of their 2012 Condition of Service (CoS).
The 2012 Single Spine Salary Structure agreement would have seen entry-level lecturers earning the cedi equivalent of $2,084 monthly, meaning others would take more.
The chapters are saying since negotiations for their CoS had stalled, the consensus was the withdrawal of teaching and related activities, and this must continue until the government puts some enhanced and progressive proposal on the table.
The members said they remained focused, united and resolute in the quest to ensure that the government initiated and implemented appropriate measures to improve their CoS.
The UTAG began their industrial action on August 2, 2021 to press home their demand for the implementation of the 2012 CoS without recourse to adjustments, meaning they are not asking for any increment in their salaries but restoration of the approved 2012 conditions.
The National Labour Commission has not been able to resolve the matter.
With the above information as the background, the Ghanaian Times finds it very difficult to take a stand on the matter because it is about conditions of service, which are welfare issues as well, and it is also about the ability to pay.
In 2012, the official (bank) rate was GHc1.905 to US$1 and today it is GHc5.96. Clearly, the cedi has depreciated against the dollar by approximately 313 percent.
However, even at an average of 11 percent over the last nine years, public sector wages have increased by only 99 percent.
Therefore, as we wrote an editorial on the same strike exactly a week ago tomorrow, the two parties, UTAG and the government, should see sacrifice as the only appeal in the impasse.
Each party should pawn in some demands for them to reach a consensus to resolve the issue because even though they are the only two parties in the impasse, other stakeholders are affected.
They should think about students, their parents and guardians, and people whose livelihoods are connected to the universities in one way or another.
Since education is the key to every nation’s development and the universities happen to be at the pinnacle of such preparation, we wish to quote the conclusion of our editorial last Wednesday as an appeal: “Already, COVID-19 has dealt the education system a blow that threatens its smooth progress, so all stakeholders must consider sacrificing to help the situation rather than worsen it.”
