UTAG-UG Threatens Strike Over Unpaid 2026 Book and Research Allowance
Dr Jerry Joe Harrison, President of the University of Ghana branch of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG-UG), has warned that members will withdraw teaching and related services from Monday, October 19, 2026, if the government fails to pay their outstanding 2026 Book and Research Allowance by October 16. In a notice of intention to embark on industrial action dated October 9 and addressed to the National Labour Commission, the association attributed the planned action to persistent delays in payment, which it says violate a 2020 Memorandum of Agreement requiring the allowance to be paid by the end of August each year. “Given the current circumstances, if by Friday 16th October 2026 these monies are not paid, members of UTAG-UG will withdraw all teaching and related services beginning Monday 19th of October 2026,” the notice stated.
The notice, also signed by the association’s Secretary, Godfred Bright Hagan, was copied to the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, the ministers responsible for Employment and Labour Relations, Finance and Education, the Director of the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, and the national president of UTAG. The latest warning follows earlier complaints by the University of Ghana branch over delays in paying the allowance, which supports lecturers’ academic and research activities. If the outstanding amount is not settled before the deadline, the planned withdrawal could disrupt lectures and other academic activities at the university.
