The Ministry of Education has renewed its appeal to striking pre-tertiary teachers to return to the classroom, despite the decision by teacher unions to maintain their indefinite industrial action.
The renewed appeal follows the unions’ rejection of an earlier call by Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu for teachers to resume teaching while negotiations with government continue.
The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) indicated that Monday’s meeting with the Education Minister and other government officials failed to produce any new concrete commitments beyond assurances previously made to the unions.
According to the union, teachers are no longer prepared to rely on promises and want government to take tangible steps to address their outstanding concerns.
“It has been the old story of promises upon promises. Where we have reached at the moment, we are not taking promises. We want action,” the union stated.
Following the meeting, the teacher unions directed their members to continue staying away from the classroom until government takes concrete action on their demands.
The Ministry of Education, however, says it remains committed to engaging the unions and resolving the outstanding issues in order to restore teaching and learning across the country.
Speaking in an interview on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Monday, September 28, the Ministry’s Press Secretary, Hashmin Mohammed, reiterated government’s appeal to the striking teachers to return to the classroom.
He said government’s immediate priority is to ensure that teaching and learning resumes to minimise the impact of the strike on students and protect the academic calendar.
“We want to continue to appeal to the striking teachers to return back to the classroom so that we can be able to let teaching and learning continue in the interest of our young learners and the nation.”
Government moves to address promotion arrears
The Ministry also disclosed that the Ghana Education Service (GES) has been directed to provide the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) with data on teachers who are yet to receive their promotion-related payments.
According to the Ministry, the information will enable the CAGD to process outstanding payments owed to affected teachers.
Mr Mohammed explained that some of the concerns raised by the unions fall outside the direct mandate of the Ministry of Education, necessitating Monday’s expanded engagement involving other government institutions.
Representatives from the Ministry of Labour, the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) and the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department participated in the discussions.
He said the various stakeholders emerged from the meeting with specific responsibilities aimed at addressing the concerns raised by the teacher unions.
Teachers’ demands
The unions are demanding, among other issues, the payment of outstanding promotion-related arrears, progress in negotiations towards a new Collective Agreement and the implementation of the Deprived Area Allowance.
The unions have maintained that concrete action from government, rather than further assurances, is necessary before they will consider ending the strike.
The indefinite industrial action began on Friday, September 25, after a September 24 deadline issued by the unions for government to address their concerns passed without a resolution.
With the strike continuing, the dispute has raised concerns about its potential impact on teaching and learning, particularly if the impasse between government and the teacher unions persists.
For now, the Ministry of Education continues to appeal for a return to the classroom, while the unions insist that tangible progress on their demands must precede any decision to suspend the industrial action.
