TUTAG suspends nationwide strike, academic work resumes November 2

The Technical University Teachers’ Association of Ghana (TUTAG) has suspended its nationwide strike with immediate effect, paving the way for lectures and other academic activities to resume across all 10 technical universities from Monday, November 2, 2026.

The Association, however, clarified that the industrial action had only been suspended and not completely called off, pending the fulfilment of commitments made by government and other stakeholders.

The decision was reached by TUTAG’s National Congress, its highest decision-making body, following a meeting on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, involving the Association’s leadership, the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC), representing the Ministry of Education, and the Vice-Chancellors of Technical Universities, Ghana (VCTU-G).

Speaking at a press briefing in Accra on Friday, October 30, 2026, TUTAG National President, Prof. Deodat E. Adenutsi, said the decision reflected the Association’s willingness to give negotiations another opportunity.

He explained that the suspension was agreed to cautiously to allow teaching and learning to resume while government and the other parties worked towards fulfilling their commitments within the agreed timelines.

Among the resolutions reached was an agreement for GTEC to facilitate a meeting involving the Minister for Finance, VCTU-G and other relevant stakeholders by November 14, 2026, to address outstanding remuneration concerns affecting post-retirement contract staff.

On the promotion of junior academic staff, the parties agreed that Assistant Lecturers and Assistant Research Fellows who satisfied their respective universities’ promotion requirements before the July 31, 2025 directive would not be subjected to the additional PhD requirement for promotion to Lecturer or Research Fellow.

The parties also addressed concerns surrounding the classification of University Librarians as academic staff. Under the agreement, the National President of the University Librarians Association is expected to submit a technical paper on the matter for consideration and implementation.

Despite the progress made in the negotiations, Prof. Adenutsi stressed that the Association’s demands remained unresolved and that the suspension should not be interpreted as an end to the industrial action.

“Thus, our strike is cautiously suspended, not terminated. Our demands remain, our vigilance continues,” he stressed.

Meanwhile, TUTAG has directed students of all technical universities to return to campus on Monday, November 2, for lectures and other academic activities.

The Association has also appealed to university managements to ensure that no student suffers academic disadvantages because of the strike, particularly newly admitted students who were unable to report to campus earlier.