The Technical University Teachers Association of Ghana (TUTAG) has described as unfortunate purported threats by the National Labour Commission (NLC) that some members of the union risk losing their salaries if its strike continued.
Speaking to Citi News, the National President of TUTAG, Dr. Solomon Keelson urged the NLC to act as a fair referee.
This is after the NLC directed the association to call off its strike saying the government had agreed to pay their allowances by January 29.
“The National Labour Commission has no business doing that; telling people that they will lose their jobs and threatening people. That should not come from the National Labour Commission,” he said.
He warned that such comments “means they [the NLC] are taking sides and we think it is unfortunate for the business.”
Dr. Keelson added that the NLC “should stay in the middle and should engage us and if you think that they have any cause against us, they can go to the court to enforce and that is better than a threat.”
Background
TUTAG declared an indefinite strike on January 6, 2020, in protest of the non-payment of allowances due its members following the conversion of polytechnics to technical universities.
The association is upset that the government did not comply with a ruling by the National Labour Commission (NLC) to ensure that members of the association started receiving allowances due them from December 2019, January 2020 and February 2020.
Technical Universities Administrators Association of Ghana (TUAAG) also joined the strike demanding full benefits of migration onto the public universities’ salary structure.
The Greater Accra Regional Chapter of TUTAG had expressed intent to end the strike early.
But this was promptly condemned by the Dr. Keelson.
“The Accra Chair has said that if National doesn’t call off the strike today, Monday, they would call it off. I think that is in bad faith. What he should have rather done is to initiate and even support us to get the people together. We are working hard to get our people together and if possible call an emergency meeting because we can’t call the strike without the consent of all of these people who matter from the various chapters.”
