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Settle your case out of court – Court advises UTAG, NLC

The High Court’s Labour Division 1, presided by Justice Frank Rockson Aboadwe has urged the National Labour Commission (NLC), and the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), to settle the issues over their industrial action out of Court.

The court recommends that the two parties reconsider their positions on the topic and consider returning to the negotiating table.

Already, interactions with both parties at various times has not yielded any positive result.

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Giving the advice on Monday, August 16, 2021, the court says both parties have two days to act on the advice before Wednesday, August 19, 2021, when the Court is expected to resume to determine the way forward.

Meanwhile, the Labour Court 1 Division of the High Court has awarded a cost of GH¢3,000 against the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) for legal procedure.

Why are they in Court?

UTAG has on several occassions accused the National Labour Commission of acting in bad faith in functioning as an arbiter in the standoff between it and the government since it declared an indefinite strike on August 2.

The Labour Commission judged the UTAG strike to be illegal and sought an injunction to put an end to it.

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Following the teacher union’s refusal to call off the strike, it is seeking contempt charges and punishment against its leadership.

UTAG’s reason for the strike

Members of the UTAG have been on strike since the beginning of August, demanding that the government restore the service conditions agreed upon in 2012, which they claim are considerably superior to the current situation.

Entry-level lecturers were paid $2,084 under the 2012 Single Spine package, compared to about $900 under the current level.

The UTAG strike has had a significant impact on academic and non-academic work at numerous tertiary institutions.

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