The Ghana Education Service (GES) has invited about 100 aggrieved teachers into a closed-door meeting in a bid to defuse growing tensions over months of unpaid salaries and delayed staff ID issuance.
The teachers, part of the 2022 batch from various Colleges of Education, have been picketing at the GES headquarters in Accra since morning on Monday, June 23, demanding action on ten months of salary arrears and the failure to process their staff identification numbers.
In a departure from standard protocol, the GES opted to meet not only with union leaders but also with a broader group of the affected teachers. Public Relations Officer of the GES, Daniel Fenyi, said the approach was to foster transparency and ensure all concerns were heard directly.
As part of preparations for the engagement, Fenyi asked the media to temporarily step aside, assuring that a briefing would be provided after the meeting. While some protesters initially resisted, insisting “no media, no interview,” they eventually agreed to the arrangement.
The teachers, who number 784 and are drawn from all sixteen regions, say they have endured enough broken promises from the GES.
“What wrong have I done? I have schooled for four years, served my country for a year, and passed my licensure exams. Is deciding to be a teacher my crime? Ten good months,” said Serwaa Korang, a nursing mother.
Another teacher, Charity Amponsah, said: “We have put up with poor conditions of service, yet we have been denied payment for our services. Is it a crime to be a teacher?”
Maxwell Adogo, posted to the North East Region, shared his struggles: “I reside in Ashaiman, but I was posted to Chereponi. I don’t have my staff ID yet, but I am the only new teacher who was posted to the school where I teach. It is not easy there. There is no potable water even to cook with. How will I survive without being paid?”
The outcome of the meeting is expected to shape the next steps in resolving the protracted salary and ID issuance concerns.