Minority Leader fight gov’t over ‘paltry’ 10% public sector pay increase
Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin has described the 10% increase in base pay for the public sector as unacceptable.
The Tripartite Committee concluded negotiations yesterday, signing an agreement for the 2025 salary increment.
However, speaking in Parliament, Mr Afenyo-Markin criticised the percentage as inadequate, insisting that the previous Akufo-Addo administration did a far better job in handling salary adjustments.
“In 2017, public sector workers enjoyed 12 and a half percent increment; 2018, 11%; 2020, 15%; 2021, there was a 4% plus interim premium of 15%; 2022 there was 15% COLA on base salary; 2023 30%; 2024 23% between January and June; and then July to December was 25%. We have just our head heard a paltry increment of 10%,” he said on February 21.
“We have just heard a paltry increase of 10%. The leader of government business must take note of this and inform His Excellency, the President that these are the numbers he came to meet. The ordinary Ghanaian worker has a higher expectation. In this 133, 24-hour Reset economy. They have a legitimate expectation that President Mahama, if he cannot match it will do better. Mr Speaker the 10% is unacceptable,” he explained on the floor.
In response, Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga defended the government’s decision, arguing that the increase was influenced by the economic challenges inherited from the previous administration.
He claimed that organised labour understood the current economic situation, and their acceptance of the 10% increase signals their confidence in the new government.
“At the end of the negotiations, the workers of this country led by their leaders, the union leaders, happily and gladly accepted the 10% increase. Accepting 10% as against 25% or 12% or 13% is a vote of confidence in the leader because they are confident that President John Dramani Mahama, when he collects the public, taxes, he will not be flying aircraft and bathing in the air, that he will not be engaging in wasteful spending,” he added.
