…Over New Tariff Increases
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has accused the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) of undermining trust and disregarding established consultation processes after the regulator announced new electricity and water tariff adjustments before completing its scheduled engagements with organized labour.
Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Tuesday (9 December), Edmund Adinkra Darko, Head of Policy and Research at the TUC, said workers were blindsided by the PURC’s decision to announce the tariff increases last Tuesday, despite a follow-up meeting with labour scheduled for Monday, 8 December.
According to him, labour expected its proposals and concerns to be incorporated into the final tariff determination.
“PURC started a consultative engagement with us. It promised to meet us on the 8th of December. Only for us to wake up and hear that they had already made the announcement. If you start an engagement, why conclude without the other party? It shows that our input was not considered relevant,” he said.
Adinkra Darko stressed that while the TUC is not entirely opposed to tariff adjustments, the abrupt announcement and the absence of a concluding stakeholder meeting point to weak transparency and disregard for institutional collaboration.
Workers Feel Shortchanged
He argued that the tariff increases would significantly erode recent wage gains for public sector workers, who secured a 9% increase in base pay for 2026.
“This makes workers worse off. How do we sustain this?” he asked. “My base pay increased by 9%, yet I must now pay tariffs increased by 13%. It wipes out everything.”
Adinkra Darko also questioned the timing and speed of the PURC’s declaration, suggesting that the regulator may have been acting under external pressure. He described the announcement as “premature” and called for the process to be reopened immediately.
Concerns Over Procedure
He explained that the standard engagement procedure requires the PURC to gather stakeholder input, prepare a draft determination, and present that draft back to stakeholders for final evaluation.
“This did not happen,” he said. “So we are concerned. Is someone pushing PURC to tick a box?”
The TUC is urging government to return to the negotiating table to ensure the tariff review does not erode wage gains. Without this, the organisation says organised labour will resist implementation of the new tariffs scheduled to take effect in January.
Call for Inclusive Decision-Making
Adinkra Darko reiterated the TUC’s commitment to social dialogue and urged government and the PURC to adopt a more inclusive approach.
“We want an inclusive process. Something we all own. Not an imposition. Because workers cannot absorb this pressure,” he said. The TUC says it will continue to monitor developments and advocate for what it considers a fair and transparent engagement before any new tariff structure is implemented
