Teachers won't honour transfers if... - Concerned Teachers

Donald Ato Dapatem & Felix A Baidoo, KUMASI Education Feb - 28 - 2014 , 17:23

The Coalition of Concerned Teachers, a teacher union group in the country has urged its members who have been affected by a nationwide transfers not to move an inch till all their entitlements have been paid in full.

The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Coalition, Mr Kingsley Anyimadu Darko expressed surprise that the Ghana Education Service (GES) was handing over transfer letters to teachers without paying them their legitimate two months gross pay in addition to their salary.

He was speaking to the Daily Graphic after a press conference on the issue noted that the coalition was not against the transfers but was unhappy with the illegal manner it was being done.

Last week, the National Association of Teachers (GNAT) issued a similar advice to its members not to go on any transfer until all grants are paid in full.

It cautioned that it would resist any attempt to transfer any of its members without paying their transfer grants, because in the last five years the GES had transferred many teachers without paying their corresponding payment of their legitimate entitlements.

On February 17, 2014 in Kumasi, the Minister of Education, Prof Naana Opoku-Agyeman, said the major problem militating against quality education provision in the country was the lack of teachers, a problem occasioned partly by inequitable distribution of teachers.

To address the problem, the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service’s (GES) has embarked on a rationalization exercise with the objective of ensuring equitable distribution of teachers to pre-tertiary public schools in the country.

She explained that a recent research by the Ministry indicated that there were more teachers than required in the urban and peri-urban centres while less privileged districts and rural schools have inadequate teachers supply.

A total of 80,000 teachers nationwide are expected to be transferred from their present schools to other locations depending on where their services would be needed with the Ashanti region having 8,000 to be transferred to rural areas.

Explaining the reasons for asking members of the Coalition of Concerned Teachers not to move, Mr Darko said it would not sit down for the rights of its members to be trampled upon just because government has decided to embark upon a rationalization exercise.

He said apart from the crude and inhumane transfers that did not conform to any laid down procedures, the Ghana Education Service and the government have resorted to some treatment that was contrary to agreed principles.

He cited instances where teachers who were due for 10 months back pay after promotion received only three months and cautioned that all these put together was stretching the patience of teachers in the country.

FACT SHEET