Education minister to meet teacher unions on Monday over strike

Mr Haruna Iddrisu, the Minister of Education, is scheduled to meet the three pre-tertiary teacher unions on Monday, September 28, to resolve a dispute over unpaid promotion arrears and other outstanding demands.

The meeting follows a nationwide strike declared by the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) and the Pre-Tertiary Teachers Association of Ghana (PRETAG) on Friday, September 25, 2026.

In a joint statement, the three unions said the strike followed prolonged delays, unfulfilled commitments and growing frustration over issues affecting teachers.

Mr Hasmin Mohammed, Press Secretary, Ministry of Education, said in an interview with the Ghana News Agency that the Minister would use the meeting to engage the unions and other relevant institutions to resolve the issues.

He said the meeting would provide an opportunity for the unions and relevant institutions to engage directly on the concerns and work towards ending the industrial action.

The Ministry, he noted, was concerned about the strike because of its potential impact on the academic calendar, and pledged to work towards an amicable resolution of the issues.

Mr Mohammed said the Ministry had made efforts to restore the academic calendar to normalcy following previous disruptions, with pupils and students from kindergarten through to the university reporting to school in September.

The meeting is expected to bring together the unions, Education Ministry, the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) and the Controller and Accountant-General's Department to deliberate on the outstanding matters and seek a resolution to the dispute.

Among the major concerns of the unions is the delay in negotiating a new Collective Agreement following the expiration of the existing agreement.

They said negotiations for a new agreement, which was expected to have been completed by June 2026, remained outstanding despite several engagements with the FWSC.

The unions are also demanding the automatic placement of teachers who successfully passed promotion examinations in December 2025 and February 2026 on the appropriate salary scales, together with payment of arrears effective January 2026.

Another demand is the implementation of the Deprived Area Allowance for teachers working in deprived communities.

GNA