The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has expressed outrage over the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission’s (PURC) announcement of increased electricity and water tariffs, describing the move as “insensitive” and a direct blow to Ghanaian workers.
PURC recently announced that electricity tariffs would rise by 9.8 percent and water tariffs by 15.9 percent, effective January 1, 2026.
The hikes coincide with the scheduled implementation of the government’s 9 percent increase in the minimum wage and base pay, prompting the TUC to call the timing a “New Year’s gift to Ghanaians.”
In its statement, the TUC highlighted that in 2025, electricity tariffs had cumulatively increased by more than 18 percent, while workers received a 10 percent wage increment. The union warned that the new utility price hikes would completely erode the gains from the 2026 wage adjustment.
“Clearly, government is demonstrating its insensitivity to the daily struggles of workers and Ghanaians,” the TUC said, adding that the increases amounted to “robbing the poor Ghanaian worker of the 9 percent wage increase it had agreed to implement on January 1, 2026.”
The TUC has demanded that the government return to the negotiating table to top up the 2026 wage increase. It warned that failure to do so would compel organized labour to mobilise workers to resist the implementation of the tariff hikes.
A press conference is scheduled for Monday, December 8, 2025, where the TUC and organised labour will outline their next steps in response to the tariff increases.
Read below the statement
