We won’t return to the classroom without concrete solutions – NAGRAT

The National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) says teachers will not return to the classroom until the government addresses the outstanding concerns that triggered their ongoing strike.

NAGRAT President, Jacob Anaba, says returning to work without concrete resolutions would undermine the concerns raised by teachers and amount to disrespecting their members.

Speaking on JoyNews' Newsfile, Mr Anaba said the unions have engaged the government on the issues for months and want the commitments made to be backed by formal agreements before calling off the strike.

“We want to go back to the classroom with some respect and honour. How are you going to explain? The teacher is already complaining. The teacher is not happy. So to call off this strike now will not be in the best interest of all of us.”

The three major pre-tertiary teacher unions — NAGRAT, the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the Pre-Tertiary Teachers Association of Ghana (PRETAG) — began an indefinite strike on September 25 over concerns including promotion-related payments, the expired Collective Agreement and the Deprived Area Allowance. Innovative teachers has also joined in the industrial action.

Mr Anaba said the Collective Agreement expired in June, while discussions on a new agreement had been ongoing since last year without a conclusion.

He also cited delays in placing teachers who passed promotion examinations on the appropriate salary scale.

On the Deprived Area Allowance, he said teachers have been pursuing the issue for years and are seeking a formal commitment from government before accepting its latest proposal.

Government has proposed measures to address the concerns, including processing payments for promoted teachers and introducing the 20% Deprived Area Allowance from January 2027. The unions have, however, said they need to verify the proposals and have the commitments documented before deciding whether to suspend the strike.

Mr Anaba said the unions are prepared to continue discussions with government, with further engagements expected to address the outstanding issues.

“Let's solve the issues and then we'll go back,” he said.

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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.