The Ghana Education Service (GES) has announced November 16, 2026, as the date for payment of outstanding promotion arrears owed to affected staff.

The announcement comes on the back of persistent concerns by teachers over delayed promotion-related salary adjustments and arrears, which led to engagements between teacher unions and the government.

While more than 56,000 teachers had already received their arrears following a government deadline of October 16, 2026, about 28,000 cases remain outstanding pending verification and validation processes.

Consequently, to avert a possible strike action by the teacher unions, the Minister for Education, Haruna Isdrisu, met them and discussed the way forward.

Following the meeting, the GES issued a statement dated October 27, noting that it was working with the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department to ensure that all outstanding arrears were paid by the deadline.

“Management wishes to inform all staff who are yet to receive their promotion arrears that efforts are being made in collaboration with the Controller and Accountant-General's Department to ensure that the outstanding arrears are paid on 16th November, 2026,” the statement said.

The GES explained that the payment system had been closed to allow for the processing of October salaries, preventing the necessary inputs from being made.

However, the system is expected to reopen on October 28 to allow the outstanding inputs to be processed and facilitate payment to affected staff by November 16.

The Service also assured staff that discrepancies identified in payments made on October 16 would be corrected and apologised for any inconvenience the changes in timeline may have caused.

“Management regrets the delay and the inconvenience caused,” the statement added.

The GES has asked regional directors to communicate the update to all affected staff.

About teacher unions strike

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) and Pre-Tertiary Teachers Association of Ghana (PRETAG), declared a nationwide strike on September 25.

The unions are demanding payment of outstanding promotion arrears and salary adjustments for promoted teachers, progress on negotiations for a new collective agreement and conditions of service, as well as the implementation of the 20% deprived-area allowance.

A crunch meeting held on Tuesday, October 5, between the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), the Ghana Education Service (GES) and the teacher unions ended without an agreement.

Speaking to the media after Tuesday’s meeting, General Secretary of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Thomas Musa, urged teachers to remain resolute as the unions await concrete timelines from government.

The unions want clear timelines for the completion of the outstanding processes and payment of the financial obligations owed to affected teachers.

The strike has disrupted teaching and learning in public pre-tertiary schools across the country, with the unions insisting that concrete commitments are needed before they will consider calling off the action.

The government, however, says it remains committed to resolving the concerns and has continued engaging with the unions through the FWSC and GES.

Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu also appealed to the striking teachers to return to the classroom, assuring them that the government is working towards an amicable resolution of the issues.

He previously announced that the 20% deprived-area allowance would be paid after the validation of eligible teachers is completed.