Hands off our pension funds, teachers warn Gov’t

Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has warned government to keep its hands off the management of the pension contribution of its members or it will take to the streets to protest.
“We have met with government and have asked that they authorize the transfer of pensions funds to the scheme operated by individual labour unions, but it seems gov’t wants to do otherwise,” Mr. Awotwe Nkansah said
The Deputy General Secretary in charge of Administration and Labour Relations at GNAT, Awotwe Nkansah, says under Ghana’s new pensions law, the National Pensions Act, 2008 (Act 766)  workers have a three-tier pensions scheme and the individual labour unions must be in charge.
Meanwhile, government insists it is the employer and should appoint a fund manager, a position the labour unions object to.
He added that government is trying to impose a fund manager on them.
“We have our fund managers and trustees…why are they refusing to pay deductions? Not a single pesewa has gone into the pensions scheme”, he lamented.
He called on GNAT to sit with government to negotiate and decide on who should appoint a fund manager.