The University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) branches at the University of Ghana (UG), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), University of Cape Coast (UCC) and University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) have demanded the immediate payment of outstanding promotion arrears owed to academic staff.
The four branches have warned that failure by the government and relevant state institutions to settle the arrears could compel UTAG to reactivate its suspended industrial action.
In a statement dated September 14, 2026, the branches expressed grave concern over what they described as the persistent non-payment of promotion arrears despite formal authorisation from the Ministry of Finance for the release of funds to settle the outstanding obligations.
According to UTAG, the Ministry of Finance, in an official letter issued in July 2026, authorised the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department to release funds for the payment of promotion arrears covering the period from 2023 to 2025.
The association said the matter had therefore moved beyond the question of whether government had approved the payments, insisting that the outstanding issue is the actual implementation of the authorisation.
UTAG said it suspended its planned industrial action in good faith to give government and relevant state institutions an opportunity to fulfil their commitments without further disruption to academic activities.
However, the association said the continued delay in paying the arrears is undermining the basis upon which the industrial action was suspended.
“The issue is therefore no longer whether payment has been authorised. It has. What remains is the commitment to payment,” the association stated.
It described the persistent delay as unacceptable, arguing that promotion arrears are not discretionary benefits but earned entitlements arising from promotions duly granted to academic staff who had satisfied the prescribed institutional requirements.
The association maintained that academic staff should not be made to bear indefinitely the consequences of administrative delays after government had formally authorised the release of funds.
The four UTAG branches further stressed that the suspension of their industrial action should not be interpreted as an indefinite waiver of the claims of affected academic staff.
According to the association, its decision to suspend the planned strike demonstrated restraint and a commitment to maintaining industrial harmony.
It, however, insisted that such restraint must be matched by reciprocal good faith from government and the relevant state agencies.
“UTAG has exercised restraint. That restraint cannot be in perpetuity,” the statement warned.
The association said industrial harmony could only be sustained where both parties demonstrated commitment to agreed obligations, particularly where organised labour had voluntarily suspended industrial action to allow government to fulfil its commitments.
UTAG-UG, UTAG-KNUST, UTAG-UCC and UTAG-UENR are consequently demanding immediate action from the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Education and other relevant state institutions.
The association’s demands are:
1. Immediate payment of all outstanding promotion arrears owed to academic staff without further delay.
2. Immediate resolution and communication of the administrative approval of the exemption required to allow outstanding promotion arrears to be settled directly on the payroll as they accrue.
UTAG stressed that further assurances without actual implementation would no longer be sufficient.
The association warned that if the arrears remain unpaid, it would reactivate its suspended industrial action and pursue other lawful measures to secure what it described as the legitimate and earned entitlements of its members.
It said any resulting disruption to academic activities would be “regrettable and entirely avoidable,” arguing that government and the responsible agencies still had the opportunity to prevent such an outcome by implementing the payment authorisation already issued by the Ministry of Finance.
UTAG nonetheless reaffirmed its commitment to constructive engagement, industrial harmony and the stability of Ghana’s academic calendar.
The association, however, cautioned that such commitment could not be maintained at the expense of the legitimate financial entitlements of academic staff.
“Our position is clear: The entitlement has been earned. Payment has been authorised. The delay has persisted. Payment must now be effected,” UTAG stated.
By 1960news.com
