Fair Wages and Salaries Commission has done its best for teachers- Smith-Graham

Mr George Smith-Graham, Chief Executive Officer of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), on Friday stated that, the Commission had done its best for teachers and educational workers.

He said their current position on the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS) has put them on the same level as their counterparts in other areas of the public service.

Mr Smith-Graham said this at a Volta Regional Teachers and Educational Workers’ Durbar in Ho.

He said though teachers’ placement on the SSSS might not meet their expectations, it ensured “fair wages”.

Mr Smith-Graham on the sideline of the Durbar told the GNA that some teachers, who had never taken professional allowance, were now beneficiaries, under the SSSS in addition to retention premium.

He said the Commission had also worked on the grades to ensure internal relativity, consistent with the Ghana Education Service structure, all towards better salary for teachers and educational workers.

Mr Smith-Graham therefore urged teachers and educational workers to develop positive attitudes towards the SSSS and not try to “rock the boat”.

“Single Spine may not be a panacea to your problems but when managed well, it will go a long way to move public sector pay to an appreciable level,” he said.

Mr Smith-Graham said the Commission was “compressing and removing overlaps” and negotiating premiums and inducements to better salaries under the SSSS.

He assured teachers and educational workers of government and the FWSC’s commitment to improving salaries.

Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, Minister for Education said education is the biggest Ministry in the country with its main challenge being finance.

She said over 30 per cent of the country’s budget goes into education, with 90 per cent of that amount going into personnel emolument.

Mrs Mould Iddrisu said government was empathetic to the plight of teachers and was taking the necessary steps to address the challenges.

“Government will not back away from its promise. We know education is a strategic Ministry so we will do all our best to resolve issues concerning teachers, infrastructure and others to ensure quality teaching and learning,” she said.

Mr Joseph Amenowode, Volta Regional Minister, described the region as a hub of human resource but expressed regret about its falling standards of education and hoped the Durbar would address those challenges.

Mr Gabriel Kploanyi, Volta Regional Director of Education said the region was privileged to have benefitted from a number of interventions from government.

He identified weak capacity at all levels as the bane of quality education in the region.

Mr Kploanyi mentioned the lack of infrastructure, adequate teacher requirement and motivation as recipe for the high teacher attrition in the region.

He urged government to “consider teachers concerns as priorities and assist them to own houses and means of transport”.

Concerns about lack of teaching and learning materials, delays in the release of government subsidies, the capitation grants, capacity building of teachers and educational workers, as well as, the accommodation of teachers, were raised by various stakeholders in education.

Source: GNA