{
  "id": 12564191,
  "title": "Teachers’ strike: You can’t negotiate while holding the other party in handcuffs – Austin Gamey",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/teachers-strike-you-cant-negotiate-while-holding-the-other-party-in",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-07T06:25:54.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Adom Online",
    "slug": "adom-online",
    "url": "https://www.adomonline.com/teachers-strike-you-cant-negotiate-while-holding-the-other-party-in-handcuffs-austin-gamey/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Labour consultant Austin Gamey has criticised pre-tertiary teacher unions for keeping their nationwide strike going while negotiations with the government are still underway. Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse, Mr Gamey argued that the unions should suspend the industrial action now that the government has started validating outstanding promotion claims and both sides are talking to each other. He likened continuing the strike during negotiations to holding the other party in handcuffs and demanding more action. \"You cannot be negotiating and you are holding your other relationship with handcuffs in your hand, and you say, if you don’t continue to pay me until you pay me, nothing can be done,\" Mr Gamey said. He warned that the ongoing strike could damage the relationship between the parties. \"When you are negotiating, you are not supposed to be on strike. I am talking about the entire world. Nowhere in the world,\" Mr Gamey added. While acknowledging that the government's initial response to the teachers' concerns may not have been as proactive as it could have been, he did not blame the unions for initially taking industrial action. However, he noted that the validation of promotion claims showed that the government was now taking steps to address the issues. Mr Gamey urged the teacher unions and the government to work together to resolve the outstanding problems and avoid actions that could further strain their relationship. He urged them to recognise the efforts being made to settle the issues and avoid actions that could further damage their relationship. Mr Gamey urged for cooperation between the teacher unions and government to prevent similar disputes from happening again. He pointed out that many Ghana Education Service officials are also members of the teacher unions. This came after renewed negotiations between the teacher unions, the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, and the Ghana Education Service to address the concerns that sparked the nationwide strike by pre-tertiary teachers.",
  "summary": "Labour consultant Austin Gamey has criticised the decision by pre-tertiary teacher unions to maintain their nationwide strike while negotiations with government are ongoing. Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse, Mr Gamey said the unions should consider suspending the industrial action now that government has begun validating outstanding promotion claims and both sides are engaging in negotiations. […]",
  "key_points": [
    "Government validating promotion claims shows willingness to address teachers' concerns.",
    "Continuing strike during negotiations could damage relationship between parties."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}