Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has aligned with the Senior Staff Association of Universities of Ghana (SSA-UoG) in launching a nationwide strike starting Friday, September 20, 2024.
This move follows the government’s failure to address their longstanding demands for better working conditions, despite multiple protests and negotiations.
In a statement, TEWU highlighted the government’s inability to fulfil previously agreed conditions, including the lack of implementation of Vehicle Maintenance and Off-Campus allowances.
Although the Ministry of Finance approved these allowances in a letter dated August 2, 2024, the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) has not yet executed the payments for TEWU members.
The union also expressed concerns over the government’s ongoing neglect of other critical issues.
TEWU also claimed that the government has failed to remit eight months’ worth of Tier Two pension deductions, which were taken from employees’ salaries but not transferred to the union’s scheme for proper management.
The SSA-UoG, which began its strike on Monday, September 16, 2024, expressed similar frustrations over the government’s failure to honour prior agreements.
With TEWU members now joining the industrial action, the strike is expected to disrupt operations at public universities across Ghana.
The union urged the government to resolve these outstanding issues to ensure a secure retirement for its members and to avoid further interruptions to the academic calendar.