UW branch of NAGRAT warns govt

Story: George Folley Quaye, Wa
March 25, 2008
THE Upper West Regional branch of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) has warned the government and other stakeholders not to blame the association if it embarks on any action that will be detrimental to the new educational reform.
“They should be ready to accept blame for any action and or leaving the classrooms for other areas at the mercy of the newly implemented educational policy,” the association said.
The association urged the government to implement the single-spine salary structure, pay the arrears of teachers who had been upgraded and increase the responsibility allowance of teachers in order to avert any unpleasant situation.
Addressing a news conference in Wa, the Regional Vice-Chairman of the association, Mr Michael Azaasomah Kpan, recalled that following the strike by members of the association two years ago, they were asked to go back to the classroom, since their salaries and responsibility allowances would be worked on.
He suggested that if the allowances would not be improved upon, then “we suggest that they be removed outright such that we spare ourselves the scorn of other departments”.
Mr Kpan asked the government to put the new pension scheme into effect as promised to start by March this year and hoped that there would be no failure.
He noted with regret that for the past three years most teachers had not experienced the automatic yearly jumps and said attempts to salvage the situation had yielded no good results.
“Besides, there are so many distortions in teachers’ salaries as a result of the Ghana Education Service upgrading and scheme of service,” Mr Kpan stated.
He added that members of the association would like to know why they were not informed about the government’s failure to implement the new salary scheme.