KsTU teachers threaten service withdrawal over 12-month unpaid salary for post-retirement faculty

The Kumasi Technical University chapter of the Technical University Teachers Association of Ghana (TUTAG-KsTU) has given the government and relevant state institutions until the end of August 2026 to validate and pay salaries and arrears owed to post-retirement contract faculty members.

The Association said 15 of the 18 post-retirement contract faculty members at Kumasi Technical University (KsTU) have not received their salaries for about 12 months despite continuing to perform their academic duties.

Addressing the media in Kumasi on Thursday, August 13, 2026, the Chairman of TUTAG-KsTU, Dr Bismark Quarku Parker, called on the Minister for Finance, Minister for Education, Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) and Director-General of the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) to urgently intervene to resolve the matter.

According to the Association, the situation has created an unacceptable disparity within Ghana’s public university system, particularly as similarly appointed faculty members at other institutions continue to receive their salaries.

Dispute Dates Back to September 2025

TUTAG-KsTU said the salary concerns first emerged in September 2025 when some post-retirement contract faculty members discovered that their salaries had not been processed by CAGD.

The Association subsequently engaged GTEC and CAGD to establish the cause of the payment disruptions.

It said GTEC indicated that the matter was outside its remit, while CAGD reportedly explained that it was acting on a directive from the Ministry of Finance.

The problem subsequently spread, with the salaries of additional post-retirement faculty members being blocked in October 2025, January 2026 and March 2026.

TUTAG-KsTU said only three of the 18 post-retirement contract faculty members at the university are currently receiving their salaries.

Association Questions Payment Disparities

The Association also expressed concern about what it described as inconsistencies in the treatment of post-retirement contract faculty across public universities.

It said some universities have all their post-retirement contract faculty members on the payroll, while others have only some of their members receiving salaries despite performing similar academic functions.

“This inconsistency and selective approach is unacceptable,” the Association stated.

TUTAG explained that post-retirement contracts enable universities to retain experienced academics beyond the compulsory retirement age where there is an institutional need and the individual meets the required conditions.

Under the Conditions of Service for Senior Members (Academic), eligible faculty members may apply for post-retirement contracts, with applications subsequently forwarded to GTEC for approval.

The Association said the arrangement had helped universities retain experienced academics to provide mentorship, supervise postgraduate research, support research activities and assist institutions in meeting accreditation requirements, particularly amid difficulties in recruiting sufficient numbers of qualified academic staff.

Engagements Yet to Resolve Matter

TUTAG-KsTU said it had held several meetings and engagements with KsTU Management, GTEC, CAGD, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance in an effort to resolve the issue.

The Association said it had also submitted several written communications to the relevant authorities.

However, it said the engagements had yielded assurances that the affected faculty members would eventually be paid, without a concrete resolution to the problem.

TUTAG-KsTU expressed frustration that the lecturers had been working for nearly a year without receiving their salaries.

Threat of Withdrawal of Academic Services

The Association has now warned that it could withdraw the services of the affected faculty members if they are not validated for payment in the August payroll.

It is demanding that all relevant ministries and agencies validate the affected post-retirement contract faculty members for payment by the end of August and settle all outstanding arrears.

TUTAG-KsTU cautioned that failure to meet the demand could result in the withdrawal of academic services and disrupt key activities at the university.

The affected activities could include examinations and the marking and submission of results, project supervision, thesis defences and graduation-related activities.

The Association said it had resorted to the media after what it described as unsuccessful attempts to resolve the matter through institutional and government channels.

TUTAG-KsTU therefore urged the authorities to act immediately to prevent the salary dispute from escalating into industrial action and disrupting academic activities at Kumasi Technical University.