Teacher Unions – GES Negotiation: Contact Hours For Teachers Reviewed

Teacher Unions and Ghana Education Service (GES) have concluded negotiations regarding the 2021/2022 academic calendar, reaching an agreement to permit facilitators to utilize 7 hours in the classroom. The decision was communicated through a letter dated 17th February 2022, jointly signed by the leadership of the Teacher Unions, namely GNAT, NAGRAT, and CCT.

The contentious issue revolved around the semester academic calendar for Basic schools, where facilitators were initially required to spend more than 8 hours in the classroom. The Teacher Unions resisted this change, asserting that the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service failed to inform them about the shift to a semester-based calendar.

As a result of these concerns, a negotiation ensued among the educational stakeholders, leading to an agreement to revert to the trimester calendar and a subsequent review of the total weeks spent in school.

The detailed outcomes of this negotiation are outlined in the letter issued by the Teacher Unions.