Teachers demand blocked salaries

Accra, Nov. 9, GNA - Members of the National Association of Graduate Teacher (NAGRAT) who have returned to the classrooms in Accra on Thursday appealed to the government to take immediate steps to pay back their October salaries to guarantee their stay in the classroom. Most of the teachers the GNA spoke to said although they had returned to the classrooms, their presence would not be effectively felt by the students if the authorities did not release their salaries swiftly.

"They want us to teach, meanwhile they are holding our salaries. How can you muzzle the horse and expect it to work, it is practically impossible," a teacher said on the ground of anonymity.

The Controller and Accountant-General has withheld October salaries of the striking teachers on the orders of the Ghana Education Service (GES) which has also warned that teachers who are not in the classrooms by November 10 would forfeit their November salaries as well. At Accra High Secondary School, the teachers had reported for duty and teaching was in full session.

Mr Isaac Ohenmeng-Gyebi, Headmaster, said that he had mapped out a series of strategies to make up for the time lost during the strike action.

"We are likely to extend the official vacation date from December 15 to 22 as well as the daily closing time."

Mr. Ohemeng-Gyebi also stressed that the main snag was the government blocking the teachers' October salaries, which could hold some teachers back and disrupt the smooth execution of his programme to catch up with lost time.

He appealed to the GES to, as a matter of urgency, pay the October salaries to give the teachers the needed impetus to stay the in the classroom.

The headmaster said he was optimistic that with the measures adopted he had put in place coupled with the experience of the teachers, the students, particularly the final year students, would come out with flying colours.

A teacher, who spoke on the ground of anonymity stressed that NAGRAT had declared "holy labour war" and was poised to fight to the end saying, "we are back but the struggle is not over; we have only changed our mode of operation."

He said their return was basically due to the public concerns and not the threats of government and asked why no action was taken against workers in other areas who also went on strike to push demands for better salaries.

"Health professionals caused a worse evil; people who died cannot return but teachers can make up for the time lost to the students. This is tantamount to treating the profession as inferior to others and that we will fight."

At the Labone Secondary School, Mrs Osei Agyekum, Headmistress, told the GNA that teaching was in progress but pointed out that final year students had no problem as the teachers were teaching during the strike.

"We only need to extend the closing time and urge them to report to school early for the maximum use of the time to redeem what is lost," she added.

At the St Thomas Acquinas Secondary School, the authorities were holding a meeting with the teachers who had reported at the time the GNA got there.

At the Osu Presby Secondary School some teachers were spotted around but teaching had not began.

Some of the students told the GNA that they were happy the teachers had finally called off their industrial action and expressed optimism that they would double up their effort to make up for lost time. NAGRAT on Wednesday communicated the ruling of the Accra Fast Track High Court that declared their strike illegal and therefore ordered them to return to the classroom.

A terse statement signed by Mr Marjore Affenyi, Publicity and Organising Secretary of NAGRAT, said:

"The Accra High Court (Fast Track Division) has ruled that the strike action by teachers is illegal and should be called off. The court by its ruling has ordered all NAGRAT members to return to the classroom. We are by this release communicating the ruling of the court to members."

Mr Kwami Alorvi, President of NAGRAT, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that they were obeying the court.

"We are obeying the ruling of the court," he said. "We have filed an appeal against the ruling, but the date has not been fixed as yet. That is why we are taking this action."

NAGRAT embarked on a crippling strike action on September 1 that has kept them away from the classrooms and put the future of students, especially SSS 3 students who would be writing their examinations in May/June next year, at risk.

Several efforts by various groups to end the strike failed and some members of the rival teachers union, Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) also joined the strike.

Some regional branches of NAGRAT have called off the strike and asked members to resume teaching.

The strike action was to back demands on the government to review salaries of workers, especially those of teachers.

The graduate teachers also asked the Controller and Accountant General to stop the use of Auto Code that effects deductions from teachers' salaries and a replacement of the Acting Director of the GES, Mr Michael Nsowah, whose compulsory retirement was due last year.