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GNAT hails Mahama’s pledge to fix Single Spine inequities

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has endorsed President John Dramani Mahama’s commitment to review the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS), arguing that the system has entrenched glaring inequities instead of eliminating them.

Speaking after the President’s media engagement on Wednesday, September 10, GNAT General Secretary Thomas Musah described the reform as “long overdue,” stressing that the SSSS has failed to reward workers fairly despite its original promise.

“How can you go to a university, do the same programme, meaning they have the same value, and yet, on the spine, the moment they come out, one is placed on level 18 and the other on 16? How do you explain this? Since we are in the nation and working together, we need systems that reward people adequately and fairly,” Musah said on Thursday, September 11.

Introduced in 2010 to harmonise public sector pay, the Single Spine sought to unify salaries under the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission. While it eased labour unrest and addressed some disparities, the policy has also been blamed for wage distortions and an unsustainable public sector wage bill.

GNAT maintains that a comprehensive overhaul, as promised by Mahama, is the only way to restore equity and fairness to Ghana’s pay system.

The government has set aside GHC1 billion in the 2026 GETFund formula to support the phasing out of the double track system in Senior High Schools (SHSs), Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has said.

Speaking at the Accra Girls Senior High School, he said the allocation forms part of efforts to ensure quality education delivery at the secondary level.

“We remain committed to ending the double track system as our contribution to continuing the quality Senior High School education,” he stated.

“Accordingly, into the 2026 formula of the GETFund, President Mahama has directed the Minister of Finance, Ato Forson, to make an allocation of GH1 billion dedicated to managing the transition and responding to the hurdles of the transition.”