DOES THE EMPLOYER REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT THE EMPLOYEES (UTAG MEMBERS) ARE ASKING FOR?
Professor M.A. Akudugu writes:
Let's try this:
1. Interim Market Premium for a Lecturer with PhD as of December 2021 was GH₵2,138.30
2. Basic salary for a Lecturer with PhD as of December 2021 was GH₵4,103.48
3. The Market Premium of GH₵2,138.30 as a percentage of the basic salary of GH₵4,103.48 is 52%; down from 114%.
4. Expected January 2022 basic salary following the 7% salary increase across board is GH₵4,390.72
5. 114% of the expected current basic salary of GH₵4,390.72 is GH₵5,005.42
6. The short fall/gap that the employer needs to bridge is GH₵5,005.42 - GH₵2,138.30 = GH₵2,867.12
6. Simply, UTAG Members, the employees are only asking the employer to pay that Lecturer with PhD Degree (i.e. approximately 22 years of Education) the balance/short fall/gap of GH₵2,867.12
7. Is this too much to ask for?
8. Please note that all these are gross payments, which means before tax. So by the time the income tax of 20% or so is applied to the gross earnings in addition to SSNIT/GUSSS deductions, the Lecturer takes home is less than GH₵5,000.
9. Please also note that if UTAG Members were not migrated to the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS) in 2013 or so, when the entry level basic salary was the Ghana Cedi equivalent of US$1,500, the current salary of that Lecturer as of January 2022 at an exchange rate of about GH₵6.00 (conservative rate) would have been GH₵9,000. This is even without annual increments.
10. The Interim Market Premium of 114% of basic salary of GH₵9,000 would've been GH₵10,260.
11. Clearly, the negative impact of migration of UTAG Members to the SSSS is obvious.
12. Now or Never!
Source: Ransford Gyampo
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