The National Labour Commission (NLC) has summoned the Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) Ghana, along with relevant stakeholders, for a crucial meeting set for Wednesday, November 20, 2024.
This follows TEWU’s ultimatum to begin an indefinite strike on November 18, 2024, unless the government addresses long-standing issues related to their conditions of service.
TEWU has expressed significant frustration over the delays in finalizing and implementing revised conditions of service for workers under the Ghana Education Service (GES), the Ghana Library Authority, the Museums and Monuments Board, and Public Technical and Traditional Universities.
Negotiations for these revisions, TEWU claims, have been dragging on for years, leaving their members dissatisfied and increasingly disillusioned.
In response, the NLC has urged TEWU to postpone the planned strike action and engage in discussions with the government and other stakeholders.
The commission hopes that the upcoming meeting will lead to a fair and amicable resolution of the concerns raised, thus preventing disruption to the education sector.
TEWU’s demands highlight growing tensions over labor conditions in critical public institutions, with the union stressing the urgency of addressing their grievances without further delay.
“In a correspondence dated 12th November 2024 with Ref. No TEWU/NLC/7/23/23 served on the Commission on 14th November 2024 by TEWU and copied among others, the Complainant Union has notified the Commission of its intention to embark on an indefinite strike with effect from Monday 18th November 2024 over claims of ‘prolonged delay in concluding, signing and implementing Conditions of Service for Ghana Education Service (GES), Ghana Museums and Monuments Board and the Public Technical Universities and Public Universities.’”
“While formally acknowledging receipt of the Union’s letter by this response, the Commission wishes to draw the Union’s attention to the requirements of the Law on the service of notice pursuant to Section 159 of the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651). In the exercise of its powers under Section 139 of Act 651, the parties are to appear as in paragraph 1, above for hearing of the issue(s) in dispute. With this intervention, the Union is hereby advised to stay the intended strike action.”
“Meanwhile, the Respondent Employer and/or its representatives and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) are to furnish the Commission with a status report of the issue(s) in dispute before the close of the working day on Tuesday, 19th November 2024,” it stated.
