Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has assured the leadership of three unions in Ghana's tertiary education sector of receiving their allowances on time.

He made this known to the unions on Tuesday, June 10, when they met to discuss the disbursement of the Book and Research Allowance.

The meeting, which was prompted by a request from the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), the Technical University Teachers Association of Ghana (TUTAG), and the Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG), aimed to address concerns over the payment of the allowance.

Dr Forson assured the union leaders that the allowance had been fully captured in the 2025 budget and that he had initiated the necessary processes to ensure its release.

"I assured them that the allowance has been fully captured in the 2025 Budget, and I have since initiated the necessary processes in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education to ensure its release," the sector minister shared on his X page.

He also commended the unions for their constructive proposal to establish a dedicated Labour Relations Desk within the Ministry of Finance, which would strengthen coordination and enhance dialogue between the ministry and labour stakeholders.

During the meeting, Dr Forson said he updated the union leaders on ongoing payroll reforms, particularly the audit being conducted by the Auditor-General.

He added that preliminary findings indicate a significant presence of ghost names on the payroll, which, if addressed, could yield substantial savings for the public purse.

Dr Forson urged the union leaders to lend their support to this important national exercise, emphasising that cleaning the payroll was not only about fiscal prudence but also about restoring integrity and fairness in public sector compensation.

This comes at a time when members of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), have withdrawn from their posts over delays in their 2024 Collective Agreement since June 2.

A 10-day injunction has been placed on the nationwide strike after the Industrial and Labour Division of the High Court in Accra described the protest as illegal.

But the GRNMA has disclosed that it is yet to formally receive a court order restraining its ongoing strike.

Public Relations Officer of the GRNMA, Joseph Krampah, has insisted that the group will continue its strike until an official injunction notice is served.

According to him, although the association is a law-abiding group, it cannot obey unofficial reports.

“They think that they should serve us a letter; we can’t prevent them, but what constitutes an illegal strike? When in Ghana has the Labour Commission said that this strike is legal? It is only illegal when they don’t inform your office about the intended strike, and we did—you had the letter,” Krampah said.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Mintah Akandoh has revealed that the government will not be able to meet the conditions of service for the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), currently on strike, this year.

Engaging the press, the sector minister announced that the conditions of service being requested to be implemented were not captured in the 2025 budget statement; hence, it will "completely throw the economy off gear if implemented in the manner it currently exists."

"We are mindful of the serious economic consequences of unbudgeted expenditure and want to avoid the economic slippages that have led to the hardship in the recent past," the Health Minister revealed.