Teachers in Kumasi desert the classrooms

Teachers in basic and senior high schools in Kumasi on Monday deserted the classrooms to begin their nationwide strike announced by the leadership of the two teacher-unions last week.

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) announced last week to embark on the strike to back their demand for better treatment of their members under the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS).

They are protesting the non-payment of allowances after migration of teachers onto the SSSS, failure to negotiate new collective agreement, non-payment of vehicle maintenance allowances and outstanding invigilation and supervision allowances.

A visit to a number of schools in the Kumasi Metropolis by the Ghana News Agency (GNA) saw pupils and students idling about. Some had also packed their belonging and gone home.

At the Chirapatre cluster of schools, classrooms had been locked, and few children were seen playing on the compound.

Mr Paul Osei-Yaw, the head teacher of the Chirapatre R/C Primary ‘B’ told the GNA that all the teachers had reported to school as usual but decided to leave as news about the strike filtered in.

He said he did everything to convince them to stay on but was unsuccessful.

The situation was not different at the Ahinsan cluster of schools. The headmaster of the M/A Junior High School (JHS), Mr Seth Kofi Kyei, was the only person at post during the visit.

Due to the difficulty in controlling the children he asked them to go home.

Mr Dominic Yeboah, head teacher of the Oforikrom Umul Qura Islamic, pleaded with the government to act quickly to resolve the teachers’ grievances to prevent any disruption of the academic calendar.