Mr John Baguri, President, Students’ Representative Council (SRC) of University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) has appealed to government and the University Teachers Association of Ghana(UTAG) to compromise and resolve their issues amicably.
Mr Baguri said the timely resolution of the issues, would ensure the continuation of smooth and effective academic work in the affected Universities.
Members of UTAG and the Senior Staff Association of Universities of Ghana on Monday August 2, 2021 started an indefinite strike from Monday, August 2, 2021, for poor conditions of service.
UTAG leadership in a communiqué on July 30,2021, directed all its members to comply with the strike, calling on its members to withdraw from teaching and other activities like examinations, invigilation, marking of examination scripts, and the processing of examination results.
The Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations meeting with the UTAG on Tuesday August 2, to resolve the issue, ended inconclusively.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Mr Baguri said the strike had affected academic activities and called on the parties to reconsider the interest of the students and address the situation in the shortest possible time.
The SRC President said the University was expected to start the second semester examination on August 2, but was suspended indefinitely due to the ongoing strike.
The outbreak of COVID-19, he said, had distorted the country’s educational calendar, stressing that if the situation was not addressed quickly, it would further affect academic activities in the Universities, including national service.
“We have communicated with the students to remain calm and prepare adequately for the exams, in case the strike is called off,” he said.
Ms Priscilla Khadi Vawurah, SRC President, Simon Deidong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies, established in 2019, appealed to government to be considerate with the demands of the Union bodies and address their concerns for academic work to continue.
She said even though the University was on vacation, the strike would affect them because the lecturers could mark their examination scripts.
“We finished our second semester exams before the strike because we are running a three semester calendar. We were to resume on August 24, while others report on September, 2021, but without amicable resolution of the issues, academic work will be affected,” she said.
Earlier, the leadership of the National Union of Ghana Students, had appealed to the two union bodies to reconsider their strike in the interest of the students, saying although their demands were legitimate.
UTAG has been asking the government to restore the conditions of service agreed upon with the government since 2012.
The 2012 conditions of service pegged the Basic plus Market Premium of a lecturer at $2,084.42.
UTAG has complained that the current arrangement has reduced its members’ basic premiums to $997.84.
The Universities’ Senior Staff on the other hand has been asking for the award of market premiums and non-basic allowances, as well as the finalisation of negotiations of their conditions of service.
