Ghana’s daily minimum wage will rise to GH¢25.04 on January 1, 2027, and to GH¢28.79 in 2028. This information was made public on Tuesday, November 10, following an agreement by the National Tripartite Committee (NTC).

According to the committee, the arrangement is expected to ensure income protection and promote industrial harmony, while enabling workers, employers and government to plan their finances and budgets with greater certainty.

Part of a statement released by the committee added, “The Committee urges all employers to comply with the new NDMW effective January 1, 2027”.

This year, all public sector workers under the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS) have had their salaries increased by nine percent from January. As part of the government’s review, the national daily minimum wage was increased from GH₵19.97 to GH₵21.77. The review follows several deliberations by the National Tripartite Committee (NTC), which comprises representatives from the government, employers, and labour unions.

It was made official on Sunday, November 9, after the government, represented by the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) and the Ministry of Finance (MoF), and Organised Labour, signed the agreement.During the signing ceremony, Finance Minister Dr. Ato Forson pledged the government’s commitment to upholding its side of the agreement while commending the efforts of Organised Labour.

“The country has gone through difficult times with high inflation and interest rates, but today both indicators have declined. The government is working to further reduce inflation from the current 8 percent to ease the burden on Ghanaians,” he said.

In July this year, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson indicated that wages and salaries exceeded the budget by GH¢1.3 billion for the first six months of the year.Per the 2025 budget statement, compensation of employees, comprising wages and salaries, pensions, gratuities, and social security, has been programmed at GH¢76.2 billion for the entire year.

Presenting the 2025 Mid-Year Budget in Parliament on Thursday, July 24, the Finance Minister revealed that the government has experienced some significant pressures on the compensation budget for the first half of 2025, mainly emanating from wages and salaries.

The wage pressures, the minister said, were largely driven by last-minute recruitments undertaken by the previous government in the last quarter of 2024, especially in the education, health, and security sectors.faced significant pressures on the compensation budget in the first half of 2025, mainly due to“In addition, ad-hoc reviews of conditions of service undertaken in previous years have distorted the Single Spine Pay Policy and further burdened the public wage bill”.

In 2024, compensation of employees amounted to GH¢67,189 million (5.7% of GDP), above the target of GH¢63,683 million (6.2% of GDP) by 5.5 percent. Wages and salaries constituted 89.8 percent of the total compensation and amounted to GH¢60,352 million (5.1% of GDP), 5.9 percent above the target of GH¢57,005 million (5.6% of GDP), per the 2025 budget statement.

In February this year, Chief of Staff Julius Debrah issued a directive annulling all public service appointments and recruitments made after December 7, 2024.accounted for 89.8 percent of A letter was circulated to heads of government institutions, instructing them to comply with the directive and submit a report by February 17, 2025, detailing the actions taken in response.

"Consistent with Government pronouncement in relation to near end of tenure appointments and recruitments, I wish to bring to your attention that all appointments and recruitments made in the Public Services of Ghana after 7th December, 2024 are not in compliance with established good governance practices and principles."