Ghanaian teachers declare indefinite strike over salary arrears

by Francis Tandoh

ACCRA, April 4 (Xinhua) -- Public-sector graduate teachers in pre-tertiary institutions across Ghana on Wednesday declared an indefinite strike over unpaid salary arrears.

President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Angel Carbonu, at a press conference said the teachers took the decision due to the deliberate actions and inaction of the government regarding the arrears.

"We have no other alternative but to advise ourselves ... When the senior high schools reopen on April 16, nobody should expect our members to be present," said Carbonu.

According to him, no convincing reasons have been given by the government for the non-payment of the salary arrears after a series of meetings between the two parties.

"What we see are orchestrations, tactics, maneuvering and manipulations employed by the Ministry of Finance to drag its feet and possibly refuse to repay the arrears at all," the NAGRAT president added.

The arrears, amounting to 50 million cedis (11.33 million U.S. dollars) accruing from 2013 are in respect of salary adjustments, up-grading and promotions, vehicle maintenance allowance as well as transfer grants.

Carbonu said it also included the salaries of newly recruited teachers into the Ghana Education Service (GES) who had taught for several months but were yet to be paid.

The strike action by the graduate teachers is set to have a toll on education, as final-year students in senior high schools (SHS) here began writing their West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) on Tuesday.

The teachers are usually engaged as invigilators and supervisors for the examinations. Enditem