National Service Personnel Threaten To Strike If Their 2-Month Allowances Are Not Paid

• The National Service Personnel Association has threatened to embark on a strike action if their allowance arrears are not paid
• The government is yet to settle their January and February allowance arrears
• Currently, the parties are in talks; however, should their allowances not be paid immediately, NASPA would lay down its tools

The National Service Personnel Association has threatened to embark on a strike if their two-month outstanding allowances are not paid to members working in the public sector immediately.

According to the Association, the usual delay in disbursement of their allowances has been taking a heavy toll on the graduates who live off the monthly stipends.

In an interview on JoyNews, the Association warned that failure to pay their stipends immediately would lead to the personnel laying down their tools.

This follows months of agitation from the Service Personnel over the delays in paying their stipends.

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Allowances for January and February of 2024 are yet to be paid.

The Secretary of the National Service Personnel Association, Nana Adu Gyamfi, said the frequent delays in paying their allowances are unacceptable.

He revealed that the association is currently in talks with the government; however, if the government refuses to play ball, it will lay down its tools and subsequently embark on a demonstration.

Service Personnel kick against deductions from their allowances

Meanwhile, some National Service Personnel began agitating against deductions made from their allowances last year.

According to the National Service Personnel Association, the deductions were to be used to finance its week-long yearly celebration.

Angry Service Personnel calling themselves Concerned National Service Personnel protested the deduction and demanded it be refunded to their accounts.

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According to them, they were not informed of the deductions, so it was made without their consent.

GH¢25 was the amount deducted from their allowances.

Following their protest, they also demanded that their allowance arrears be paid immediately.

Governments increase NSS allowance

YEN.com.gh reported that the National Service Scheme has announced that the government has given the green light to increase the monthly allowance paid to personnel.

This was contained in a statement issued on July 23, 2023.

The NSS disclosed that the upward review is from GH¢559 to GH¢715 and is expected to take effect from January next year.

The upward review that will take effect from 2023 is about twice what personnel of the scheme were taking before a review in 2017.

The announcement means that personnel who are currently in active service are entitled to arrears for the difference in the upward adjustment from January 2023.

Source: YEN.com.gh