Teacher unions call off intended strike

The teacher unions who last week threatened to embark on strike over some unresolved labour issues have called off their intended action.

The teacher unions which include the Ghana National Association of Teachers, Coalition of Concern Teachers and the National Association of Graduate Teachers, raised issues regarding their condition of service, transfer grant, un-validated teachers, vehicle and maintenance allowance and annual incremental credit.

Addressing a news conference in Accra on Wednesday, after a meeting with the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), the representatives of the various teacher unions announced reaching an agreement with the Commission over their concerns, hence calling off their intended strike.

Mr Ernest Opoku, President of the Coalition of Concern Teachers, commended the FWSC for urgently addressing their concerns and called for a continuous dialogue to prevent the future occurrence of threats from the teacher unions.

He gave the assurance that the unions would not allow their members to present fraudulent documents and warned against such acts.

Mr George Smith Graham, Chief Executive Officer of the FWSC, said the agreement reached by the teacher unions would be fulfilled.

He said with regards to the working condition of the teachers, the various teacher unions have submitted their documents to the Commission.

He said a team involving the management of the Ghana Education Service, Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations would soon engage the teacher unions to work on their conditions of service.

He said with regards to the unvalidated teachers, a release would be sent to the various unions across the country to submit names of the unvalidated data to the headquarters of the Ghana Education Service by end of October 23, for redress.

He urged all to help in the clean-up of the payroll and its management.