JUSAG threatens strike from November 2 over delayed salary review

The Judicial Service Staff Association of Ghana (JUSAG) has threatened to embark on an indefinite strike from Monday, November 2, 2026, if the government fails to approve and pay its members’ reviewed salaries and allowances.

The association has given the government until the end of October to approve the recommendations of the Judicial Council on the 2026 salary review, with payment expected in November, including arrears covering January to October.

In a notification of industrial action dated October 23, 2026, and addressed to the Executive Secretary of the National Labour Commission, JUSAG said prolonged delays in concluding the salary review process had heightened tensions and dampened staff morale.

The association said the Judicial Council had completed its work on the review and submitted its recommendations to President John Dramani Mahama for determination in line with Article 149 of the 1992 Constitution and the Judicial Service (Terms and Conditions of Service) Regulations, 2025 (C.I. 141).

However, JUSAG said efforts to secure approval had yielded little progress despite several letters to the Judicial Council and Management, as well as public appeals to the government.

According to the association, it wrote to the Judicial Council on January 19, 2026, to expedite the process and again raised the matter in a letter dated September 10, 2026.

It also cited appeals made at its Second Quadrennial Delegates’ Conference in Tamale in August, the 45th AMJG Conference in Accra in September, and the Chief Justice’s Staff Durbar held in Tamale in September.

JUSAG said the appeals had been met with assurances without any concrete action towards approving the recommendations and paying the revised salaries.

“It is instructive to note that our colleagues elsewhere in the public sector had their new salaries for 2026 approved and paid in January, 2026. We are now in the tenth month of the year, and our members are still waiting — patiently, but no longer quietly,” the letter stated.

The association said the delay was particularly concerning because organised labour was already negotiating the base pay for 2027 while Judicial Service staff were yet to receive their reviewed base pay and allowances for 2026.

It warned that the prolonged uncertainty undermined the principles governing salary determination under the new legal framework.

JUSAG said it had previously urged its members to exercise restraint because of the potential impact of industrial action on justice delivery and national security, while continuing to engage Management and the government.

However, it said the hardship among members had become severe and their patience was exhausted.

The association’s National Executive Council has therefore set two demands: approval of the Judicial Council’s recommendations on the 2026 salary review by the end of October, and payment of the revised salaries in November, together with arrears from January to October.

JUSAG warned that if the demands are not met by Sunday, November 1, 2026, it will commence an indefinite strike on Monday, November 2, until the demands are fulfilled.

The notification was copied to the Office of the President, the Judicial Secretary, the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, the Minister of Finance, and the Minister for Jobs, Labour and Employment Relations.