The Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) has given the Ghana Education Service September 4 as deadline to resolve the grievances of members.
The warning was contained in a resolution adopted by the National Executive Council, NEC, of TEWU presented to the Director General of the Ghana Education Service in Accra on Friday.
“TEWU members would advise themselves in relation to the start of the new academic year,” the resolution said.
The National Executive Council of TEWU which is made up of representatives of members across the country is the second highest decision-making body of the union.
The resolution said efforts to resolve the matter on Critical Support Premium (CRS) since 2011 had not yielded positive results, thereby demoralising the remaining eight categories of staff.
“The rank and file of the union have come to a cross road on this issue. We therefore resolved that the premium should be extended to the remaining eight classes as soon as possible,” the resolution said.
It said the CSP was instituted to recognise the critical contribution of the non-teaching staff to education in Ghana and include administrative, secretarial, supply and material, technical (general), technical (transport), semi-skilled (labourers/cleaners) and security staff.
The resolution said some of its members who went through promotion interviews, among others, had neither receive their promotion letters, nor promotion with upgrading.
“The above issues are of grave concern to our rank and file. We are resolved that GES management should immediately engage the leadership of TEWU to initiate pragmatic measures to curb all the issues raised in relation to promotions,” it said.
The resolution said GES did not provide any scientific basis for the disbursement of the intervention fund, a package introduced by the government due to the increase work load on TEWU members as a result of the free Senior High School policy.
“However, Ghana Education Service Management in disbursing this fund allocated 80 per cent to the teaching staff and 20 per cent to the non-teaching staff without any scientific basis. The non-teaching staff in the Ghana Education Service serves both GREEN and GOLD tracks without any rest period. We resolved that GES management should engage the leadership of the union for review of the sharing ratio,” the statement said.
The resolution said appeals by TEWU to the GES to recruit more non-teaching staff due to the increase work load on its members, as a result of the implementation of the double track system, had provide futile.
On annual leave, the resolution said GES was disregarding the negotiated provision of the conditions of service of TEWU members and urged the management of GES to strictly adhere to the provisions in Conditions of Service for the non-teaching staff.
“In spite of the worrying pupil–teacher ratio, trained teachers who are required to be in the classrooms to impart knowledge to students have taken over the duties of the non-teaching staff in the offices and are ironically enjoying the teacher’s retention premium meant to retain them in the classrooms,” the resolution said and stressed “GES management should immediately move all teachers performing non-teaching duties to the vacant classrooms where their services are urgently needed.”
By Times Reporter
