Ghana’s three main pre-tertiary teacher unions began a nationwide strike on Friday, September 25, 2026. They are the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) and the Pre-Tertiary Teachers Association of Ghana (PRETAG).
They say the government missed a September 24 deadline to resolve their concerns, according to The Rio Times. Their demands include promotion arrears, a new collective agreement and a 20 percent deprived-area allowance, according to Graphic Online.
The promotion demand is specific. GhanaWeb reports the unions want teachers who passed the December 2025 and February 2026 promotion exams placed on the right grades. They want arrears paid from January 2026. That is nine months of pay at issue.
What the Government Has Promised
Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has made a firm commitment. Graphic Online quotes him: “The government team makes a commitment to the teacher union and to all teachers that we will honour our commitment to the new grades for all promoted teachers on or before October 30, 2026.”
At a National Teaching Council symposium, he went further, according to Citi Newsroom: “If by October 30, your promotion arrears are not paid, then I will have no honour.”
MyJoyOnline also carries two headlines from the Minister. One says 51,000 teachers’ promotion arrears are to be validated for October payment. The other says a committee has been set up to validate teachers eligible for the 20 percent deprived-area allowance.
What the Unions Have Said
The unions do not want promises. After a meeting with the Minister, GNAT’s Head of Salaries, Grievances and Negotiations, Isaac Baah, said, as quoted by Citi Newsroom: “It has been the old story of promises upon promises. At the moment, we are not taking promises. We want action.”
A meeting with the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission on Tuesday, October 6 ended without agreement, according to the Ghana News Agency and Graphic Online. Graphic reports that NAGRAT’s president, Jacob Anaba, said unless the commission got a mandate, the unions did not know when they would next meet. The strike, he said, was still on.
Also on October 6, the Ashanti regional secretariats of the three unions held a press conference in Kumasi, according to GhanaWeb. They said members would not return to class. They said the unions had given the government until October 16, 2026, to provide verifiable evidence that promotion arrears have been paid.
Why the Gap Exists
I think the gap is partly about timing, and partly about trust. On timing, the unions have said they want to see salaries reflect on payslips, according to a MyJoyOnline headline. A payslip is produced by a payroll run. If the run falls late in the month, then no proof of payment can exist by October 16. That is my inference, not a confirmed fact.
On trust, the unions have heard dates before. Baah’s quote says as much. The government’s reply is a personal pledge from the Minister. That is a serious statement. But it asks the unions to trust the same promise they say has failed them.
The numbers also do not line up in public. Anaba told Citi Newsroom that the Ghana Education Service had validated over 30,000 teachers who went on promotion. “Now we’re talking about 80,000 teachers,” he said. It is not clear from the report what the 80,000 refers to. The Minister’s headline number is 51,000. The government has also identified about 11,300 schools that could qualify for the deprived-area allowance, a figure NAGRAT wants verified.
When people do not agree on the head count, they cannot agree on the finish line.
My Argument: Build a Bridge With Checkable Dates
I do not think either side should simply wait for the other to blink. Here is what I would propose.
First, the government should publish its numbers before October 16. It should state how many promoted teachers have been validated, how many are awaiting validation, and the date of the payroll run that will carry the new grades. A named date is something the unions can check. A promise is not.
Second, the unions should say precisely what counts as evidence. If it is a payslip, they should say so, and accept that it can only exist after payroll. If something earlier would do, such as a signed placement list or a payroll confirmation from the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department, they should name it. A vague demand cannot be met.
Third, both sides should agree on a short sequence of dated milestones. For example: validated list published, placement letters issued, payroll run confirmed, payslips checked. The strike could be tied to those steps. That would turn one standoff into four checkpoints.
I want to be fair to both sides. The teachers’ grievance looks legitimate on the facts reported. They sat promotion exams, passed, and say they have not been paid at the new grade for months. The government has also made specific commitments and put the Minister’s name to them.
The Counterargument
Some will say the unions should not move until money lands. That is a fair view. They have been told dates before.
Others will say the government cannot pay faster than its validation process allows. That is also fair. Validating tens of thousands of records takes time.
My point is narrower. Neither fact requires the standoff to last until October 30. Checkable milestones can protect teachers from another empty promise. They can also protect the school calendar. The Minister himself appealed to teachers to protect it, according to a MyJoyOnline headline.
The Bottom Line
A strike should end when a problem is solved, not when a calendar runs out. Right now the two sides are counting to different dates. Fourteen days sit between them.
The fix is not complicated. Name the numbers. Name the evidence. Name the dates. Then let anyone check. Pupils have no seat at the table, and they are the ones who wait.
