Teachers welfare: Pay equal attention to non-teaching staff - TEWU urges govt
The Teachers and Educational Workers Union (TEWU) has called for a level playing field for teaching and non-teaching staff as far as welfare issues are concerned.
Advertisement
That, it said is to ensure that the country is able to deliver the kind of quality education it has yearned for.
“In the enterprise of education, it is not only teachers; the non-teaching staff also have a key role to play in ensuring that we attain the education delivery that we are looking for and so there should not be any attempt on the part of government to discriminate against non-teaching staff.
Attention
“So, inasmuch as teachers welfare and other things are being considered, we expect government to pay similar or equal attention to the needs of non-teaching staff so that they would also be able to deliver on this quality education delivery we have set on ourselves.
Together, teaching and non-teaching staff can build a very strong education system,” the General Secretary of TEWU, Mark Denkyira Korankye, said.
He was speaking at the 13th Quadrennial Greater Regional Delegates Conference of TEWU last Tuesday in Accra.
It was on the theme: “Fostering Partnership for Equitable Education Delivery in Ghana: The Role of TEWU”.
The delegates
Mr Korankye said to attain equitable education delivery in Ghana, there was the need to include everybody, adding that “No child should be left behind”.
He, therefore, said there should not be any form of discrimination against a child from a village with less-endowed resources in favour of a child from the city, with better resources at his or her disposal.
Height
“Whatever height a child in the urban city attains, a child in the rural area should also be able to attain that height as long as their brains assimilate whatever they have been taught,” he emphasised.
The TEWU General Secretary noted that the theme for the event encapsulated an unwavering commitment to the future of education in the country.
Again, Mr Korankye said work place safety was key and that “we must ensure that the environment in which we work is free and devoid of any danger so that we would go to work and come back home safely”.
He called on the government to give due recognition to the efforts put in by non-teaching staff in ensuring that teaching and learning went on unabated.
The Dean of Students Affairs of the Accra Technical University, Martin Owusu Amoamah, said TEWU’s unwavering commitment to the cause of education in the country was nothing short of inspiring.
“As we gather here today, I want you to picture the faces of the countless children across Ghana who yearn to learn, grow and chase their dreams.
As educators and union members, we share a common purpose to ensure that every child in our great nation has access to quality education, regardless of their background or circumstances.
Today, I want to take you on a journey towards fostering partnerships that will illuminate the path to equitable education in our beloved country,” he said.
Barriers
He said TEWU alone could not dismantle the barriers to equitable education in the country and that real change called for partnerships with not just union members, but with the government, communities and other stakeholders who shared their vision.
“Collaboration with the government is paramount.
We must engage constructively, ensuring that our voices are heard and actively shape policies and their implementation.
It's time to be architects of our own future, and collaboration with the government is a cornerstone of this endeavour,” he said.
The Greater Accra Regional Chairman of TEWU, Rev. Michael Adu-Poku, said education was key to personal development and the future of societies as it unlocked potentials and narrowed inequalities.
He said although their administration had been fraught with some challenges, it had been able to chalk-up some successes, notwithstanding.
