Accra, Jan. 17, GNA – The University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) says it will announce whether to suspend the ongoing strike after feedback from members of the Association.
“We are hoping that by the close of the day or from Tuesday, January 18, 2022, we will make an announcement on our position on the directive of the National Labour Commission,” Professor Solomon Nunoo, the National President, UTAG, said in an interview with the Ghana News Agency.
He said: “We were supposed to meet on Sunday, January 16, to come out with a decision, but some of our members could not get the meeting organised,” he said.
Prof Nunoo said the Association after its National Executive Council meeting on Thursday, January 13, 2022, was waiting to collate the views from its members before taking a firm decision on the directives of the NLC to call off its strike.
The NLC on Friday, January 14, 2022, in a communique, directed UTAG to call off its industrial action and resume work.
The communique said the Association should submit “formally” the other issues it said were in dispute to the employer for redress for the parties to negotiate and report back to the Commission by February 16, 2022.
The Commission issued the directive after hearing the disputing parties on Thursday, January 13, 2022, in the matter of the strike by members of UTAG, which commenced on Monday, January 10, 2022.
The NLC in its findings said the strike by UTAG was illegal as it did not follow the due process prescribed by Sub Part II of Act 651 on the Settlement of industrial disputes, specifically, section 159 on notice of strike.
It stated that the issue over, which UTAG embarked upon the strike had been settled, thus submission of the report on the Labour Market Survey.
The parties are the Government, represented by the Minister of Employment and Labour Relation and his Deputy, Deputy Minister of Finance, the Chief Executive of Fair Wages and Salaries Commission and the Director-General of Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, and UTAG, represented by its President and some executives.
UTAG, in a communique, had announced the withdrawal of members’ services across the country effective Monday, January 10, 2022.
It said the strike was due to the Government’s failure to address “worsening” conditions of service of lecturers.
GNA