The education sector of the country is currently at a standstill as teachers in public kindergarten, primary, JHS, SHS, and university are all on strike for various reasons.

The Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition (GNECC) is attributing the labour unrest in the sector to the lack of effective communication between government, through the Education Ministry, and teacher unions.

The National Coordinator of GNECC, Bernice Mpere-Gyekye, described the situation as a crisis in education that needs urgent attention for resolution.

She added that if the causes of the labour unrest is not addressed immediately, its impact on teaching and learning will be unbearable for the country.

Industrial actions

On Thursday, October 13, four labour unions in the public universities embarked on a strike action.

The University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA), Teachers and Educational Workers Union of Ghana (TEWU) and the Senior Staff Association of Universities of Ghana (SSA-UoG) want the government to settle their outstanding online teaching support allowance (OTSA) and non-payroll allowances.

Amongst other demands, the unions also want government to settle the payment of the Book and Research Allowance for 2022 and implement the agreement reached in March on the implementation of the market premium or review the Single Spine Salary Structure in 2023.

They were followed by three teacher unions – GNAT, NAGRAT and CCT – who declared nationwide industrial action over the appointment of a banker as the Director-General (D-G) of the Ghana Education Service.

According to the Unions, the strike which took effect on Friday, November 4, 2022, will continue “until further notice.”

Meanwhile, two major staff associations at the 46 colleges of education across the country have threatened to lay down their tools in five days if government does not prioritise their welfare.

The groups; the Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) and the Colleges of Education Non-Teaching Staff Association of Ghana (CENTSAG) say they are disappointed at “the way Government has handled issues affecting the welfare of our members in the colleges of education over the years.”