The Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) has said threats to cut their salaries will not deter them from continuing their strike action.
The President, Prince Obeng Himah, has said they have already picked signals about the punitive action and will therefore not be surprised if it happens.
“No, we won’t be surprised at all. We have heard whispers from certain corridors that punitive actions were going to be taken if we dared go on strike. These were some of the things that were whispered: salaries will be frozen, those of us leading the strike will be imprisoned, and we are fully aware of what is ahead as union members.
“How do you say we won’t be paid if we don’t sign attendance when it has not been part of our scheme of things?” he said.
On August 1, CETAG embarked on an indefinite strike to push the government to redeem its promise of implementing their negotiated conditions of service.
Their decision follows the government’s non-compliance with the National Labour Commission’s (NLC) Arbitral Award Orders and the negotiated conditions of service since May 2, 2023.
An order from NLC for CETAG to call off the strike was not adhered to and as a result, the former has said the Ministry of Education has legitimate grounds to withhold the August salaries of striking members.
According to the NLC, the government can also terminate their appointment if ongoing validation by the ministry finds them absent from work.
But Mr Himah has proposed an open conversation with the NLC about their salary arrears with a clear payment roadmap.
“We are not happy with the turn of events. We need to fight to right the wrongs, if we do not fight, we will not even live to benefit from what we are fighting for.
“The whole documentation should result in payments, at the end of the day, the economy is hard, and people continue to be on expired 2021 conditions of service. Those are the things we should pay attention to,” he suggested.
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