Government has resolved 80% of issues behind teachers’ strike – Manuribe
A member of the government communications team, Richard Manuribe, has stated that government has resolved about 80% of the issues that led pre-tertiary teachers to embark on their nationwide strike.
The nationwide strike was declared on September 25 by the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) and the Pre-Tertiary Teachers Association of Ghana (PRETAG).
The unions cited unpaid promotion arrears, failure to place promoted teachers on the appropriate salary scales, delays in negotiating a new collective agreement and the non-implementation of a 20% deprived-area allowance.
He said negotiations are ongoing over outstanding payments to teachers, particularly arrears related to promotions and other conditions of service.
Speaking on Accra-based Channel One TV's Breakfast Daily show on Thursday, October 8, Manuribe said government was also taking steps to improve teacher accommodation and expand school infrastructure, particularly in deprived communities.
“80 percent of the problem has been solved. The only problem they said is, okay, so we will want our because the NDC promised them that teachers in the rural area will give 20% of their salary as allowance and we are also telling them that with our next month budget, we will put that into place to leverage their life,” he said.
Mr Manuribe said government was also addressing the broader welfare challenges facing teachers, including accommodation in rural and deprived communities.
“We are building schools across the country. We are building attached with teachers bungalows for them. We have seen teachers go to a community where there’s not even a single room for them to sleep,” he said.
He added that the government had secured funding to construct new secondary schools and expand existing facilities as part of efforts to improve the education sector and eventually eliminate the double-track system.