The origins of CETAG's current strike action trace back to 2021 when the association's leadership initiated negotiations on their overall Conditions of Service. After several weeks without satisfactory responses, members felt compelled to cease their duties due to what they perceived as unfair treatment by the government. The Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) also delayed addressing CETAG's demands, which ultimately led to the strike declaration.
On January 10th, 2023, the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) invited CETAG leaders to a meeting to resolve the issues causing the strike. Following assurances from the government that FWSC would resume and swiftly conclude negotiations, CETAG called off the strike. However, the FWSC continued to delay, prompting another strike by CETAG in December 2022. On December 7th, 2022, the Minister of Education wrote to CETAG, urging them to end the strike with a promise to resolve all issues within two weeks. When this promise was not fulfilled, CETAG resumed the strike on January 6th, 2023. FWSC then reported CETAG to the National Labour Commission (NLC) for engaging in unfair labor practices during ongoing negotiations.
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On January 25th, 2023, the NLC brought together CETAG and FWSC to resolve the dispute and directed CETAG to end the strike, which CETAG did in good faith. On March 1st, 2023, the NLC referred the matter to Compulsory Arbitration after failed negotiations. The Panel of Arbitrators issued their Arbitration Awards on May 2nd, 2023. Despite this, the employer failed to implement the awards, leading CETAG to issue a strike notice in accordance with the Labour Act 2003, Act 651.
CETAG declared an indefinite strike on August 1st, 2023, to pressure the employer to comply with the Arbitration Awards. The NLC held a hearing on August 30th, 2023, and issued a second directive on August 31st, 2023, instructing FWSC to comply with the awards by October 30th, 2023, while CETAG was to call off the strike immediately, which they did.
By the end of October 2023, FWSC and the employer had again failed to comply with the NLC's directives. As a result, CETAG informed the NLC of the non-compliance and requested court enforcement of the May 2nd, 2023 orders under Section 172 of the Labour Act 2003, Act 651. CETAG continued to write to the NLC seeking proof of enforcement, but received no response. Despite multiple reminders, the situation remained unresolved, and GTEC attempted to set aside the Compulsory Arbitration Awards by arguing that only CETAG members with PhDs should be migrated to the Public University Salary Structure, contrary to the Arbitration Awards.
On June 2nd, 2024, during a meeting before the NLC, GTEC stated that the employer had not implemented the Arbitration Awards because they believed CETAG members did not deserve them. GTEC also claimed that the staff audit for Colleges of Education was only a proposal, not a basis for salary adjustments.
Despite the NLC's directive to FWSC to implement the awards and provide evidence by June 26th, 2024, neither FWSC nor any government representatives appeared in court, leading to an adjournment to July 18th, 2024. This series of events has led CETAG to distrust the government's commitments and insist on concrete evidence rather than just a signed Memorandum of Agreement (MoA).
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