POTAG annouce end to strike action

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover Striking Polytechnic teachers, who for the past three weeks have been on a sit down strike, have called off their action. The decision was taken last Friday after an emergency congress called to deliberate on the issue. The teachers were demanding to be paid the revised salaries under the single spine salary structure pay policy. POTAG at the end of May this year declared a strike and indicated that out of the 25 functions performed by lecturers of the country’s Polytechnics, they have decided to suspend teaching, project supervision and invigilation of examinations. The strike affected teaching and learning on various campuses across the country forcing some to shut down and others to suspend indefinitely end of semester examinations. Management of Kumasi Polytechnic had to close down in line with the statutes of the polytechnic education which allowed for a shutdown of the facility after three weeks of inactivity on campus. Speaking to the Daily Graphic via telephone, the General Secretary of The Polytechnic Teachers’ Association of Ghana (POTAG), Mr. Oswald Atiga confirmed that the teachers after an emergency congress last Friday have rescinded their earlier decision and looking forward to the implementation of the new pay policy as well as resumption of academic work. It will be recalled that on Friday June 8, 2012 POTAG issued a statement and said it will only call off its on-going strike action when they have seen evidence of the test-run being undertaken by the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) in migrating its members onto the Single Spine Salary Structure at the end of June 2012. -END- June 18, 2012