The Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA), is urging the government to holistically address agitations on the conditions of service of all labour groups in tertiary institutions nationwide.
It says the current stalemate between the government and the University Teachers Association (UTAG), as well as the Senior Staff Association of Universities of Ghana if not properly handled, could have repercussions for other workers’ unions within the university space.
The appeal by the university administrators is on the heels of the ongoing tussle between the National Labour Commission (NLC) and the agitating UTAG and SSAoUG members, who have laid down their tools in demand for better service conditions.
But National President of the Ghana Association of University Administrators in a Citi News interview said the government should, as a matter of urgency, find an amicable solution to the concerns of the striking workers.
“When you are dealing with one group in terms of their conditions of service, you are likely to create more problems because as soon as you finish with one and the other one is not satisfied, they will raise issues. So the idea is for government to settle conditions of service of all these categories holistically”, he said.
Already, the Senior Staff Association of Universities of Ghana has said it will engage its National Executive Council (NEC) to decide whether to comply with the NLC’s directive to call off its nationwide strike or not.
The NLC after a meeting with the Association and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission on Thursday, August 5, 2021, gave the directive assuring that their concerns will be addressed.
But the President of the Senior Staff Association of Universities of Ghana, Mohammed Zakaria, said the Association will keep pushing until their concerns are addressed.
“So they [NLC] want us to call off the strike immediately, and I am going to call for a National Executive Council meeting and together determine whether to call off the strike or not.”
In a related development, a meeting between the government and UTAG, over its ongoing strike, ended inconclusively on Wednesday, August 4, 2021.
The industrial actions by the two groups have had an impact on academic activities in various universities, with threats by the management of some institutions to close down the school if the strike exceeds two weeks.
UTAG is demanding the implementation of a 2012 Single Spine package which puts entry-level lecturers on a salary of $2,084, while the senior staffers want the computation and release of their tier 2 Pension in arrears with interest.
