CETAG Serves Strike Notice Over Conditions of Service
The Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) has served notice to embark on an industrial action over their conditions of service.
In a statement issued on December 23, the Association assigned reasons for the decision.
It pointed to the employer’s failure, over a period of 20 months, to complete the migration of the colleges of education teaching staff onto the affiliate universities’ pay structure, as well as prolonged delays by the Government in issuing new appointment letters based on the staff audit report and the affiliate universities’ scheme of service.
These delays prevented the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) from effecting the migration in October 2024 as agreed.
Additionally, it cited the Government’s undue delay in paying the remaining forty-two (42) Colleges the one-month basic salary as compensation for all-year-round work done by CETAG members in 2022 as ordered by the NLC on 2nd May 2023; and the non-payment of top-up of Book and research allowance for 2023 to staff of Akrokerri College of Education.
“As a result of these deliberate and incessant violations of signed agreements and roadmaps by the Government since 2nd May 2023, we wish to once again serve notice of our intention to resort to another indefinite strike action per section 159 of the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651).
“The Union was reluctant to take this decision and thus resorted to several engagements with the key stakeholders including MELRP, MoE, GTEC, FWSC, PRINCOF and CAGD, to lay the matter to rest. When the engagements proved futile, a press release was subsequently issued on Monday, December 16, 2024, but all these efforts have not resulted in any concrete outcome.”
The strike action, it said, would take place if the needed measures are not taken by December 31, 2024.
It has therefore called on stakeholders including the incoming administrations to get involved to ensure the smooth migration of colleges of education teaching staff onto the affiliate universities’ pay structure.
“National Council wishes to reiterate that the Union shall no longer countenance further excuses and wilful violation of the agreement signed between the parties by the Government. National Council shall proceed to declare another indefinite strike action per section 159 of the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651) if the outstanding concerns are not addressed by Friday, 31st December 2024,” it warned.
Source: opemsuo.com/Hajara Fuseini
