The government has hinted that there will be numerous engagements on the future of the Single Spine Salary Structure. The Fair Wages and Salaries Commission earlier this year announced that there will be a review of the over a decade-year-old salary structure.
The government began implementing the pay policy in 2010 to regulate the payment of public service workers’ salaries and also guarantee a better public sector pay.
Speaking on the review at the labour conference in Koforidua in the Eastern Region, the Minister of Employment and Labour Relations, Ignatius Baffuor Awuah, said the future of the pay policy will soon be determined.
“I must admit lately we have had some calls by some organizations to opt-out. We are having further engagements to determine whether the Single Spine has outlived its purpose or not and whether we should maintain it or make changes.”
Though it was well-intended for the good of public sector workers, analysts have called for a review due to the discrepancies and the burden it puts on government expenditure.
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) for instance, has persistently called for a review of the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS), saying it has not served its purpose.
In 2019, the President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers, Angel Carbonu, called for a review of the policy, saying that the policy had given room for the state to take advantage of public sector workers.
“I don’t think in this country we pay more than we work. I will say, rather in this country, the state is taking advantage of the people and the state is undercutting people who work to contribute to the development of our country…The salary of a Ghanaian teacher averagely is just $300, with some paid below $300, there are people who get as low as $200,” he said.
