Members of the KNUST branch of the Tertiary Education Workers Union-Ghana (TEWU-Ghana) have announced plans to disrupt a University Council meeting to elect a Vice Chancellor if representatives from the rival group TEWU-TUC are allowed to participate.
The two Associations have had their membership in the 12-member Council suspended pending the outcome of a suit at a Kumasi High Court.
However, TEWU-Ghana claims there are attempts to allow TEWU-TUC representatives into the University Council.
TEWU-Ghana broke away from TEWU-TUC in June 2022, garnering 866 out of the 1,060 existing members.
Since 2019, the teachers and education workers union has had no representation on the KNUST University Council.
Section 7 (h) of the KNUST statutes mandates that the University Council shall include “a representative of the teachers and education workers Union.”
The Council is set to reconvene on Thursday, June 20, 2024, to elect a Vice Chancellor after failing to endorse Prof. Rita Akosua Dickson for a second term in the previous meeting.
At an emergency meeting on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, TEWU-Ghana executives at KNUST warned that including TEWU-TUC representatives in the voting process would cause chaos on campus.
Charles Arthur, Chairman of TEWU-Ghana, KNUST branch, told Joy News that it would be illegal to allow TEWU-TUC to participate in the second round of voting when they were excluded from the first.
“To our surprise, university management and TEWU-TUC have connived to allow TEWU-TUC to send a representative to the council,” Arthur said. He questioned why the university management would recognize a union with fewer members over the one with the majority.
“In KNUST here, we have about 886 TEWU-Ghana members. The other side, TEWU-TUC, has fewer members. Out of 1,060, we have 866 members. At what point does the minority take precedence over the majority?” Arthur asked.
The agitated workers have vowed to exercise their rights under the Labour Act, Act 651, if their demands are not met.
“We have heard that there’s going to be a council meeting tomorrow. We are closely monitoring whether they would swear in somebody or not. If they swear in anyone, there will be industrial disharmony here,” Mr Arthur warned.
He emphasised that the university management would regret any attempt to disregard an earlier ruling by the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission, which asked all parties to stay put.
The warning comes as the GTEC committee tasked to address the stand-off begins work.
“Our members are on the ground monitoring, and we have decided that if there’s an unlikely event, members will hold themselves in readiness. Whatever we can do to prevent confusion, we will do that,” Arthur stated.
Meanwhile, University Relations Officer Dr. Norris Bekoe has declined to comment on the issue.
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