The Ghana Association of University Administrators (GAUA) has accused the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission of failing to properly engage the union over changes to its remuneration package.

GAUA National President Rev. Kwaku Karikari Amoah said the union had been told that government wanted negotiations to focus on two items on its payslip, but later received communication describing the outcome as a new market premium.

He said the change was made without the union’s agreement.

“When we had a letter from Ministry of Finance telling us that effective date should be 1st July,” Rev. Amoah said, adding that the union had originally agreed on an April 1 implementation date.

He said GAUA subsequently wrote to theFair Wages and Salaries Commission and the National Labour Commission seeking clarification and intervention.

According to Rev. Amoah, the union had not received a formal acknowledgement of its letters despite hand-delivering them.

He also accused the commission of communicating with a consultant who had represented GAUA during negotiations without first engaging the union.

“We didn’t tell them to do any negotiations with our consultant,” he said on theAsaase Breakfast Show on Tuesday (11 August).

The GAUA president further alleged that administrative and professional staff had not been paid some of the amounts that other employees had received.

He said the union believed it had been treated differently during the negotiations and accused the Fair Wages Commission of failing to deal with it in good faith.

“Fair Wages was not truthful to us,” he said.

Rev. Amoah said the dispute extended beyond the current negotiations, citing what he described as salary-placement disparities and other unresolved issues affecting administrative staff.

He said GAUA had repeatedly raised those concerns with the relevant authorities over several years without satisfactory responses.

The union has consequently withdrawn its services and is demanding that government address the remuneration issues before it returns to work.