Ghana Association of University Administrators Resumes Nationwide Strike Over Market Premium Disparities

The Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA) has officially announced the resumption of its nationwide strike, directing all members across public universities to abstain from work effective Monday, August 10. This decision, reached during the association’s National Congress in Sunyani, comes as a reaction to what the group describes as widening and unjustifiable pay disparities between teaching and non-teaching senior members. The reactivation of this industrial action follows a previous suspension, signaling a breakdown in negotiations and a lack of satisfactory resolution regarding the welfare of university administrators.

At the heart of the dispute is a significant gap in the Market Premium and related allowances provided to different categories of senior staff. According to GAUA, recent adjustments have resulted in teaching senior members receiving an average market premium of approximately GH¢10,000, while their non-teaching counterparts receive only about GH¢4,718. This discrepancy of over GH¢5,282 is seen by the association as a direct threat to internal equity and a violation of the core objectives of the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP), which was originally designed to ensure fair compensation for work of equal value.

GAUA leadership emphasizes that this industrial action is not an attack on their teaching colleagues but a necessary step to demand equitable treatment from the government. The association argues that despite a 40% increase previously granted to non-teaching members, the fundamental inequities have actually escalated since the introduction of the Single Spine Salary Structure in 2012. These persistent disparities have reportedly damaged staff morale and created a sense of disharmony within the administrative ranks of Ghana's public higher education institutions.

Before resuming the strike, GAUA indicates that it made several attempts to seek a peaceful resolution, including petitioning the National Labour Commission (NLC) for intervention. However, the association claims these appeals have gone unanswered, leaving them with no alternative but to withdraw their services. GAUA is now calling on the government and relevant stakeholders to address these market premium inequities immediately to restore industrial peace and ensure a harmonious working environment across the nation's public universities.