No November salary, no negotiations – CETAG pokes government

The Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) has resolved not to engage in any negotiations with the government until the November salary of its members is released.

The Association says teachers in colleges of education will no longer tolerate discrimination by the government.

“We are serving notice of our resolve not to enter into any meaningful discussion with any stakeholder until the tutors are paid their November salary which has been unlawfully frozen”.

Addressing the media in Kumasi after an emergency meeting, CETAG President, Prince Obeng-Himah described as falsehood information being peddled by the PRO of the Ministry of Education on its indefinite strike.

“The Ministry of Education through its PRO has churned out a lot of factual inaccuracies on the indefinite strike action by Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana."

“That, CETAG broke away from on-going negotiation process to declare strike as claimed by the PRO of the Ministry is a calculated falsehood”.

Mr Obeng-Himah says government continues to treat teachers in colleges of education unfairly.

CETAG is demanding payment of market premium as well as book and research allowance comparable to what is given other teachers in public tertiary institutions.

“Our colleague teachers that hold similar qualifications and skills as ours in other comparable public tertiary institutions are given a market premium in the range of GHc 1,683 to Ghc 1,850 whilst government intends to give us a paltry sum of GHc 127.

“Admitting us into the tertiary education fraternity after the passage of Act 847 (2012) presupposes that we qualify for that across-board figure."

“Any attempt to deny us the package amount to gross discrimination”.

Teachers in the 46 public colleges of education across the country have been absent in the classrooms for 23 working days now.

The teachers are on strike over government’s failure to give them market premium and book and research allowance.