GNAT, NAGRAT and CCT declare strike

Three teacher unions, the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), and the Coalition of Concerned Teachers (CCT), have declared a nationwide strike effective Wednesday, March 20, 2024.

In a statement on Wednesday, signed by the various representatives, the unions mentioned the delayed renewal of their Collective  Agreement and the lack of a “functional” Scheme of Service for teachers as the reasons for their strike.

“Following the expiration of the collective agreement in 2023, negotiation of the new Collective Agreement should have been completed by February 29, 2024, but this has not been so,”  the statement said.

“We have also drawn the attention of the Director General of the GES to the fact that the GES does not have a functional Scheme of Service for Teachers. Thus a more cogent and an appropriate one which takes care of all requirements in the teaching profession needs to be developed for us,” it added.

In addition, the teacher unions further raised concerns over the government’s inability to complete the distribution of laptops to teachers, the announced changes to the school calendar without negotiation, and the blockage of their members salaries by the Office of the Special Prosecutor “without recourse to laid down procedures.”

“In the light of the above circumstances and given the delays and unfulfilled promises on the part of the employer and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission and also threats from the rank and file of our members we the pre-tertiary teacher unions do stand with our members and hereby declare a nationwide industrial action effective today, Wednesday, March 20, 2024, to press home our demand,” the teachers announced.

Meanwhile, following their strike action, the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) has invited the three teacher unions for negotiations on Thursday, March 21, 2024.