The Judicial Service Staff Association of Ghana (JUSAG) has threatened to embark on an indefinite strike from November 2, 2026, if the government fails to approve and pay its members’ reviewed salaries and allowances for the year.
The association has given the government until the end of October to approve the Judicial Council’s recommendations on the 2026 salary review, with payment expected in November, alongside arrears covering January to October.
In a notification of industrial action dated October 23, 2026, and addressed to the National Labour Commission, JUSAG said its members had waited several months for the review process to be completed, despite repeated appeals to the relevant authorities.
The letter, signed by the General Secretary, Abdulai Yakubu, said the association would declare an indefinite strike commencing Monday, November 2, if its demands were not met by Sunday, November 1.
JUSAG explained that the salaries and conditions of service of Judicial Service staff are governed by Article 149 of the 1992 Constitution and the Judicial Service (Terms and Conditions of Service) Regulations, 2025 (C.I. 141).
Under the legal framework, salaries and conditions of service are determined by the President on the advice of the Judicial Council, while Regulation 25 provides for an annual salary review.
According to the association, following the expiry of the previous salary review in December 2025, it requested a review for 2026 from the Judicial Council, which subsequently completed its work and submitted its recommendations to the President for determination.
However, JUSAG said delays in concluding the process prompted it to write to the Judicial Council on January 19, 2026, urging it to expedite the matter.
The association said it sent another reminder to management on September 10 and made public appeals at several events, including its Second Quadrennial Delegates’ Conference in Tamale in August, the 45th AMJG Conference in Accra in September and the Chief Justice’s Staff Durbar in Tamale, also in September.
Despite these efforts, JUSAG said the government had yet to take concrete steps to approve the recommendations and pay the revised salaries.
“These appeals have been met with only assurance,” the association stated, adding that the prolonged delay had heightened tensions and dampened staff morale.
JUSAG further expressed concern that other public sector workers had received approval and payment of their 2026 salary adjustments in January, while Judicial Service staff remained without their revised salaries nearly ten months into the year.
The association noted that organised labour had already begun negotiations on the 2027 base pay, even as its members continued to await their 2026 salary adjustments and allowances.
It argued that the delay and uncertainty undermined the principles underpinning salary determination under the new legal framework established by C.I. 141.
The association said it had exercised restraint because of the potential consequences of industrial action for justice delivery and national security.
However, it maintained that the hardship among its members had become increasingly difficult to bear.
“ The hardship among our members is real, and their patience is exhausted,” the letter stated.
JUSAG’s National Executive Council has consequently resolved to demand approval of the Judicial Council’s recommendations by October 31 and payment of the revised salaries in November, together with all outstanding arrears from January to October.
The association said it would proceed with the strike if the government failed to meet the demands by November 1.
