A proposed 10% base salary increase for Ghanaian public sector workers has ignited frustration among labor unions, with political scientist Prof. Ransford Gyampo calling the offer “too small” given the soaring cost of living and recent precedents.
The criticism comes as President John Mahama appeals for austerity, admitting the economy is a “crime scene” after what he termed “reckless” fiscal management by predecessors.
“This increment isn’t good enough. We previously saw 23% and 25% raises. I expected more, but these are difficult times,” Gyampo conceded during a televised interview, referencing the Mahama administration’s struggle to balance worker demands with a debt-laden economy. While acknowledging labor’s “magnanimity” in reluctantly accepting the offer after Mahama personally joined negotiations, he underscored widespread discontent: “My people aren’t happy.”
The backlash highlights Ghana’s precarious balancing act. Inflation, though easing from a 2023 peak of 54%, remains stubborn at 23% year-on-year, eroding purchasing power. Public sector wages consume over 50% of tax revenue, limiting room for hikes. Mahama, addressing unions, framed the 10% raise as a bitter pill necessary to avert economic collapse. “Our options are few. We can’t behave like ostriches hiding from reality,” he argued, pledging sweeping budget cuts—including slashing government spending—to “tighten belts across the board.”
The president’s stark admission of inherited economic “criminality” resonated with unions long skeptical of political elites. “When citizens suffer, leaders can’t live lavishly,” said Isaac Bampoe Addo, spokesperson for public sector workers. “But 10% is an insult when bread prices have tripled since 2022.”
Mahama’s proposed fix—an independent emoluments committee to set salaries from “president to laborer”—aims to depoliticize wage talks. Yet analysts question its timing. “This should’ve been established before austerity demands,” argued economist Dr. Priscilla Twumasi Baffour. “Trust is already broken.”
The standoff reflects deeper tensions. Previous governments, including Mahama’s prior tenure, approved double-digit raises during calmer economic climates. Now, with Ghana’s debt-to-GDP ratio at 88% and the IMF demanding fiscal discipline, workers feel penalized for systemic failures. “We’re paying for political recklessness,” said teacher Adwoa Mensah. “Why must our salaries bear the brunt?”
As unions threaten protests if inflation outpaces wages, Mahama’s plea for patience—promising “bigger shares” of a future economic “cake”—rings hollow for many. With trust in short supply and austerity fatigue growing, Ghana’s wage crisis risks becoming yet another flashpoint in its fragile recovery.
