Ghana Nurses and Midwives Suspend Strike, Services to Resume Saturday After Parliamentary Breakthrough
The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has announced the immediate suspension of its nationwide strike action, bringing a much-needed reprieve to Ghana’s strained healthcare system. The association has instructed its members to resume their normal shift duties from Saturday, June 14, 2025.
The GRNMA initiated the nationwide industrial action on June 4, 2025, primarily due to the government’s failure to implement key provisions outlined in their 2024 Collective Agreement. This pivotal agreement, formally signed over a year ago by the GRNMA, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, addresses a range of critical issues essential to the welfare and professional practice of nurses and midwives. These include long-standing concerns such as unpaid allowances, delayed postings of new graduates, and demands for significantly improved working conditions.
The GRNMA had publicly expressed deep frustration over the government’s inaction despite multiple follow-ups, which included official letters and numerous visits to the relevant ministries. The association had consistently demanded the immediate implementation of the agreement, citing the government’s prolonged delays as a profound breach of trust. They warned that this breach not only threatened the quality of healthcare delivery across the nation but also exacerbated the worrying trend of nurse migration, driven by challenging and often poor working conditions.
The decision to call off the strike comes after a crucial “crunch meeting” held by the Health Committee of Parliament with representatives from both the GRNMA and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission. This high-level intervention appears to have paved the way for de-escalation.
Announcing the suspension, the President of the GRNMA, Perpetual Ofori-Ampofo, stated that the leadership decided to suspend the strike following a fruitful engagement with the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health.
“The engagement held with the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health and other interested parties on Thursday, 12th June, 2025, was very fruitful and has paved the way for an amicable resolution of the impasse with our employer concerning the implementation of our Collective Agreement,” Ofori-Ampofo stated, highlighting the positive outcome of the discussions.
She further elaborated on the conditional nature of the suspension: “In view of point 1 above, the GRNMA’s industrial action initiated on 2nd June, 2025, is hereby SUSPENDED pending the outcome of the follow-up meeting scheduled for 26th June, 2025.” This indicates that while immediate services will resume, a full and lasting resolution of their demands is contingent on the outcomes of these future, critical negotiations.
The impact of the strike on public health facilities across the country had been severe, disrupting essential services and leading to widespread patient suffering. In a desperate measure to mitigate these negative effects, the government had been compelled to appeal to retired nurses and midwives across the country to volunteer their services. Speaking at a press briefing on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, Minister of Health Kwabena Mintah Akandoh had publicly noted this measure as an attempt to ease the burden on patients.
“Given the urgency of the situation and the suffering of patients, the government is appealing to retired nurses and midwives to volunteer their services for a brief period, pending the resolution of the impasse,” Minister Akandoh had stated, underscoring the critical state of healthcare delivery during the industrial action.
Concluding her statement, Perpetual Ofori-Ampofo issued a direct call to her members: “We call on our dear nurses and midwives to resume their normal shift duties from Saturday, 14th June, 2025, and assure you that we will not rest on our oars until the Collective Agreement is fully implemented.” This assurance aims to encourage compliance among members while firmly reaffirming the association’s unwavering commitment to seeing their demands met in full. The suspension offers a crucial temporary reprieve, allowing healthcare services to stabilize across the country while all stakeholders work towards a definitive and comprehensive resolution.
