The Senior Staff Association-Universities of Ghana has announced that its members will not return to work until their demands for improved working conditions are met.

The Vice Chair and women’s organizer of the Legon branch, Mary Yahaya confirmed that the strike was declared on Wednesday and that it will include all units of the association.

 “All services that are being provided on campus. Everything. If national has declared that all units should be affected, we shouldn’t exempt any unit. As we mentioned earlier on, UCC has closed down their clinics and gradually it will get to UG too,” she said on Monday, January 22.

According to Mary Yahaya, the Senior Staff Association had previously sent letters to the government informing them of the planned strike but had not received any response or action.

In addition to the issue of working conditions, the Senior Staff Association has also accused the government of failing to pay into the pension fund, which has had a negative impact on the retirement benefits of staff who have recently retired.

“How long are we going to wait? You work your heart out for the development of the nation, when it is time for you to go and rest, something small that will come into your pocket to cushion you, that one too you have to be begging. It’s heartbreaking.”

“Everybody will go on pension. Even as we are active now, who is listening to us? Then if you go on pension, who will listen to you? So this is the time to fight, to let management and the bodies understand that they shouldn’t wait for us to go and be beggars for serving the country."

Mary Yahaya has also raised concerns about a new document from GTECH, which outlines an allowance for senior staff.

According to her, senior staff don’t supervise members to work but rather do the work themselves.

“So how do I work and I’m being told that I am a supervisor so I should go for a call-in allowance when I’m not supervising anybody. We have the assistant registrars and the senior registrars who supervise.”