Unpaid Youth Employment Agency staff demand ten months salary arrears
About 300 staff members of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) across the country are demanding the release of 10 months’ unpaid salaries.
The affected employees have accused the agency of neglect and frustration, claiming the delay has worsened their financial conditions and, in some cases, driven colleagues to attempt suicide.
At a news conference in Kumasi on Wednesday, October 8, the aggrieved staff appealed to President John Dramani Mahama to urgently intervene to ensure payment of their arrears.
“Mr. President, please hear our cry and save us and our families from further starvation,” pleaded Osei Yaw Akoto, the convener for the group.
According to the workers, they were permanently employed in November 2024 after receiving clearance from the Public Service Commission and the Ministry of Finance. However, despite being at post since December 1, 2024, they claim they have not received any salaries.
They explained that most of them had served the agency as contract staff for between two and eight years before being regularised onto the payroll.
They alleged that after CEO Malik Basintale assumed office, he confirmed during a Zoom meeting in February 2025 that their mechanisation was valid but said an audit would be conducted to address concerns about a few unqualified staff.
The workers said the audit was completed in March 2025, but no official communication has been issued since. Several petitions to management, including one through their lawyer in June 2025, have also gone unanswered.
“We are starving,” the spokesperson lamented, noting that the prolonged salary delays had left many families in dire hardship, with some unable to feed their families, pay school fees, or sustain their marriages.
They further cited cases of colleagues suffering strokes and one nearly attempting suicide due to the situation. The group described the development as a human rights issue and accused management of deliberately frustrating them out of their jobs.
