The Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) says it has processed and paid 6,079 promotion-related salary adjustments submitted by the Ghana Education Service (GES), insisting that outstanding teacher promotion arrears in Ghana cannot be settled until the required documentation is received.
The clarification follows complaints from the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) and the Pre-Tertiary Teachers’ Association of Ghana (PRETAG) over delays in placing promoted teachers on their appropriate salary scales.
According to CAGD, GES submitted 6,079 completed promotion forms and corresponding letters as of September 22, 2026, out of an expected 58,620 cases.
The Department maintains that every case received was processed, with the applicable arrears included in September salaries.
CAGD Says All Submitted Cases Have Been Paid
In its press release, CAGD stated that “all 6,079 cases submitted by GES were fully processed and paid,” including arrears calculated from January 1, 2026.
The figure represents only a fraction of the expected promotion cases, leaving more than 52,000 awaiting submission or processing under the Department’s stated procedure.
CAGD said responsibility for initiating promotions rests with the employer, in this case GES, while the Controller’s Department validates the changes and implements the corresponding payroll adjustments.
It stressed that it cannot independently place employees on new salary scales without the employer’s supporting records.
“Any outstanding payment therefore relates to cases for which GES is yet to submit the requisite documentation for validation and processing,” the Department explained.
How Teacher Promotions Enter the Payroll
CAGD outlined two systems involved in processing government salaries.
The Human Resource Management Information System, known as HRMIS, is managed by the employer and records personnel changes, including promotions.
The Integrated Personnel and Payroll Database 2, or IPPD2, is managed by CAGD and handles the corresponding payroll transactions.
Once a promotion is effected in HRMIS, GES must submit a completed change-of-grade input form and a copy of the employee’s promotion or upgrading letter.
The input form must carry the signatures of an authorised preparer and approver whose specimen signatures have been provided to CAGD.
These requirements, the Department said, are “not mere administrative formalities”.
They are intended to prevent fictitious promotions, unauthorised salary adjustments and irregular payments from the public payroll.
CAGD maintained that transactions without the necessary documents must remain suspended until validation is completed.
The Department traced the current arrangement to an August 31 meeting involving the Education Minister, Deputy Education Minister, GES leadership, teacher unions and the Controller and Accountant-General.
At that meeting, the parties agreed that GES would submit a master list of promoted staff, their promotion letters and completed input forms to enable payment of salary adjustments and arrears effective January 1, 2026.
The agreement followed complaints from teachers who had passed promotion examinations but were still awaiting placement on their new salary grades.
The unions had previously welcomed assurances that affected teachers would be placed by the end of September, with a supplementary payroll arrangement expected for outstanding cases.
Teacher Unions Continue to Demand Resolution
The clarification comes amid continuing disagreement over the implementation of the promotion arrangements.
GNAT, NAGRAT and PRETAG declared a nationwide strike on September 25, citing unpaid promotion arrears alongside other unresolved conditions of service.
Ghana News Agency
The unions have also sought automatic placement for teachers who successfully completed promotion examinations.
CAGD’s explanation places responsibility for submitting the required records on GES, rather than requiring individual teachers to initiate their own payroll adjustments.
The Department said it remains available to work with the Education Ministry, GES and the unions to resolve legitimate payment concerns.
Its statement, signed by Head of Public Relations Cephas N. Dosoo, urged stakeholders to avoid public statements that could misrepresent the Department’s responsibilities.
For affected teachers, the immediate issue is whether GES can submit the remaining promotion records quickly enough for their salary adjustments and arrears to be processed.
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