Daniel Fenyi, Head of Public Relations, has confirmed that action has been taken on all three demands that triggered the recent pre-tertiary teachers’ strike. These include the payment of promoted teachers, the signing of a collective agreement, and the introduction of a deprived-area allowance.
He commended the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service (GES) for their handling of the crisis. Mr Fenyi says payments have exceeded the one-week target, the collective agreement has been signed, and a January 2027 timeline has been set for the deprived-area allowance.
He made the submission on Monday, October 19, following the end of the strike, which lasted two weeks. The teachers had demanded that promoted teachers be placed on their appropriate salary scales and paid accordingly, that the collective agreement be negotiated and signed, and that the deprived-area allowance be introduced.
“All three demands have received the urgency and attention they deserved. I commend the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service for their timely response and commitment to resolving the teachers’ concerns,”
Daniel Fenyi, Head of Public Relations
On the first demand, Mr Fenyi said supplementary payment vouchers were raised and payments made to more than 50,000 promoted teachers.
A contrast with the 2022 strike
The target was 51,000 payments within a week, but the authorities exceeded it, paying a little over 56,000 teachers.
He added that the remaining cases, about 20,000, which include lower ranks, have been fully processed and are awaiting payment.
On the second demand, Mr Fenyi confirmed that the collective agreement has been negotiated and signed by all parties, as the teachers had demanded. The strike was called off at the negotiation venue immediately after the signing was completed.
On the third demand, January 2027 has been earmarked as the timeline for completing the documentation and background work needed to introduce the deprived-area allowance. Much of this work is expected to be carried out in collaboration with teachers.
Ministry and GES commended
Mr Fenyi said the Ministry of Education and the GES suspended almost every other activity and committed their full energies to resolving the welfare issues.
Although he believes the crisis could have been prevented, he described the government’s management of it as very commendable. The response, he said, was timely, the reaction appropriate, and concrete solutions have been provided.
He congratulated the Minister for Education and his team for their supervision of the process, noting that payments were made in keeping with the Minister’s public commitment.
He also paid tribute to the GES team, especially the Director-General, who he said worked late into the night and gave up weekends to ensure the one-week ultimatum was met. In his view, such sacrifice is justified when the welfare of teachers is at stake.
Mr Fenyi compared the outcome with the last comparable strike by teachers, in March 2022. That action also lasted two weeks. However, he said teachers were forced back into the classroom after the courts declared the strike illegal. They received no payment, and their demands were not addressed, which he described as total disrespect to teachers.
“Little by little, the dignity of our profession will be restored.”
Daniel Fenyi, Head of Public Relations
He said he was glad that, this time, the teachers’ demands had received the action they deserved.
Assurance on promotions
Mr Fenyi also addressed fears that the strike could lead to fewer teachers being promoted this year. He acknowledged that the number promoted last year was the highest in recent times, which may have contributed to the delayed payments. He assured teachers, however, that this would have no effect on the number of promotions this year.
Every applicant who meets the requirements and passes the promotion process will be promoted, exactly as was done last year.
He argued that it is better for teachers to be promoted and receive their financial benefits a little later than for the system to fail applicants deliberately to keep the number of successful candidates low and speed up payments.
Teachers, he stressed, deserve both career progression and the financial benefits that come with it, and neither should be sacrificed for administrative convenience.
Attention now turns to the payment of the remaining 20,000 cases already processed, and to the documentation for the deprived-area allowance ahead of the January 2027 timeline. The outcome of this year’s promotion exercise will also be closely followed.
READ MORE: Culture of Victim Blaming Why Girls Face Sexual Abuse – Mensah
