80% of public sector workers earn less than GHC3k monthly – GSS

According to the Government Statistician, Professor Samuel Kobina Annim, the average salary of the public sector worker is GHC2,594.

The GSS data further revealed that although the maximum salary in the sector is GHC33,000, the top 10% earners in the public sector earn a total of 22% of salaries paid by the government.

“80% of the public sector workers earn less than 3,000ghc. If you take every 5 employees, 4 out of them are earning less than 3000ghc. On the other hand, if you have the disparities, if your take home is on a minimum of Ghc418 relative to a maximum of 33,000ghc.

Look at this rate, minimum 418ghc, maximum about 33,000 and because 80% earn less than 3,000ghc you get an average figure of 2,594ghc. Despite the conversation on earnings in politics, the first basic thing we do is put all of us in the public sector in groups of 10 in ascending order based on our earnings,” Prof. Annim disclosed at the release of the 2022 report of Earnings Inequality in the Public Sector.

He continued: “Three things are certain, if you take the top 30% they earn more than precisely 32% of the total salary in the public service. If you take the first bottom 50% they are earning just about a 3rd of the total earnings within the public sector. If you take the bottom 20% they are earning just about 11% of the total earnings.”

Meanwhile, the government of Ghana paid about GH₵2.3 billion in salaries and allowances to public sector employees in December 2022.

The report said the government of Ghana employs about 688,000 persons, with over one-third (34.8%) of the employees in the Ashanti (18.2%) and Greater Accra (16.5%) regions.