CETAG Threatens Industrial Action Over Unpaid Arbitration Awards

The leadership of the Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) has issued a stern warning to the government, stating that they will not hesitate to take further action if the compulsory arbitration awards and associated payments are not fully implemented by December 20, 2024.

CETAG’s warning stems from an order issued by the National Labour Commission (NLC) on May 2, 2023, which required the government to ensure the implementation of the arbitration awards. However, despite several strikes and protests to push for these demands, CETAG claims the government has failed to address the issue, leaving teachers dissatisfied and frustrated.

In a statement, CETAG recounted the longest strike in their history, which lasted from June 14 to August 19, 2024. The strike was called off after the government promised to address their concerns. However, despite the promise, no action has been taken, and the deadline for implementation—set for October 30, 2024—has passed without any resolution.

“If the December 20, 2024 deadline passes without the full implementation of the arbitration awards and payments reflecting in our accounts, no amount of talks or interventions from any quarters shall convince us to change our decision,” CETAG stated in their message.

CETAG also highlighted the delayed payment of the All-Year-Round Compensation (AYRC), which was supposed to be paid by August 31, 2024, according to the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA). As of December 16, 2024, only four out of the 46 colleges have received their full payments, which CETAG considers to be a clear failure on the part of the government.

The association described the government’s attitude as “deliberate” and expressed disappointment over the continued unmet promises. “We consider this promised and failed attitude of the employer to be a deliberate attempt to eventually deny us what is due us,” CETAG’s statement concluded.