The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has urged the government to absorb part of the recent utility tariff increases so that consumers are not made to carry the full burden. The call was made by the union’s Vice Chairperson,Dr Ken Tweneboa Kodua.
Dr Tweneboa Kodua said the TUC is advocating a process that reviews the operational costs of the utility companies to determine which expenses should be supported by the state and which should legitimately fall to consumers.
He noted that such an approach would bring fairness to households and businesses already under economic pressure.
“Can we get funds to subsidise or to assist Ghana Water or ECG so the entire burden is not shifted to the consumer?” Dr Tweneboa Kodua said in an interview with Citi FM on Monday, December 8, 2025.
The TUC vice chairperson stressed that the union is not opposed to efforts by the Ghana Water Company and the Electricity Company of Ghana to secure the resources needed to function effectively.
“We are not doubting that Ghana Water or ECG need funds to improve their operations,” he said. “But everything should be done in the context of the law.”
Dr Tweneboa Kodua explained that the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) had invited TUC leadership to an initial stakeholder meeting in September at the Alisa Hotel to discuss proposed tariff adjustments.
He said both parties agreed that further technical meetings were required to examine the proposals in detail before any final decision.
“We made it clear that we would need a proper tabling of the issues so we can look at them at our poverty level,” he noted. “So we agreed there would be another meeting to look at the major points they presented.”
He said the PURC subsequently issued a notice inviting the TUC to a follow-up meeting scheduled for 8 December. However, before that engagement could take place, the Commission announced new tariffs on 2 December.
“We received notices from PURC that they were going to engage us on 8 December,” Dr Tweneboa Kodua. “Only for them to announce a new tariff on December 2 when you have given us an indication that you were going to engage us on December 8. We find this unacceptable and not fair to our social dialogue partnership.”
Dr Tweneboa Kodua outlined the variables PURC considers in its quarterly adjustments, including inflation, the exchange rate, fuel costs and the energy mix. Major reviews, he said, also take into account operational, maintenance and human resource costs.
He emphasised that these variables should be assessed to determine which ones the government should absorb and which should be passed on to consumers.
“Let us look at these variables and see which ones should go to the government and which ones should be pushed to the consumer,” he said. “And we also need to know that the consumer must have an ability to pay.”
He added that workers secured a 9 per cent wage increase from January 2026, but the new tariffs a 15 per cent rise in water charges and a 9 per cent increase for electricity would wipe out that gain.
“You give us 9 per cent with the left hand and with the right hand you are bringing us 15 per cent water and 9 per cent ECG,” he said. “What is the impact of this on the 9 per cent wage increment? This is a fair question that should be analysed.”
The TUC’s statement followed an emergency meeting of its steering committee held to determine next steps after last week’s press release on the tariff increases.
Mr Koduah stressed that the union’s concerns relate to fairness and due process, not opposition to tariff adjustments when they are justified.
“If you allow this to happen, what we are saying is that from now on the PURC will have the sole mandate to impose and decide without anyone making input,” he warned. “And that is not what the law or the framers of the law had in mind.”
When asked what level of increase the TUC would consider acceptable, Mr Koduah said this should emerge from the technical committee’s deliberations after a full assessment of all funding options, including government subsidies. “There are options to look at,” he said.
