… Set For Indefinite Strike Soon
By Timothy Ekpo
UYO
In furtherance of their efforts to get their salary entitlement, the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) in the University of Uyo have called on the Federal Government to pay the four months of withheld salary owed them since 2022.
The committee made the call during a one-day protest held simultaneously nationwide, to compel the Federal Government to honour the non-victimization agreement clause signed with members of JAC that embarked on a nationwide strike in April 2022.
JAC during the one day protest, said that failure of government to adhere to its demand, with the payment of the withheld salary on or before July 18, it would would embark on a nationwide strike.
During the protest, members of the committee marched within and outside the university campus with placards, chanting solidarity songs.
Some of the placards read We are protesting. Federal Government, pay us our withheld salary, Enough of FG divide and rule antics, pay us our four months withheld salary now.
Addressing the workers at the protest, the chairman of the committee, University of Uyo branch, Dr Anietie Atai, said following unresolved issues in the 2009 agreement between the Federal Government and university unions, under the egis of JAC, went on strike in 2022.
Atai who is the chairman, Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, University of Uyo branch, stated that when the strike was suspended, the Federal Government, after negotiation with the committee, reached an agreement that government would pay salary for the period the unions were on strike without punishing workers, upon which the non-victimization agreement clause was endorsed.
She stated that in January 2023, JAC met with government on the matter and had another meeting in February and had a letter sent to President Bola Tinubu who granted a waiver to the effect that all workers in the universities that took part in the nationwide strike of 2022 be paid their salary from May to August 2022.
Atai maintained that on implementation in March, the directive of the President was ignored as payment was effected haphazardly, with the exclusion of JAC, a development, she stressed, compelled the committee to embark on a one week warning strike in March 2023.
“That directive was implemented, but when it was implemented, it was implemented haphazardly. The other side was paid, while this side was left unpaid.
“You will also recall that in that same March, we sent notice to the Federal Government, informing them that we would embark on one week warning strike to ensure that we press home our demand. We embarked on one week warning strike which recorded 99 per cent compliance,” Atai said.
She informed the workers that during the strike, government met with the leadership of the committee and resolved to pay 50 per cent of salary, but up till date had not done anything about the resolution.
The committee condemned government representatives’ insensitivity to the plight of workers and urged the President to check attempt by his subordinates to sabotage his directive on the payment to alleviate the sufferings of the university workers, some who had passed on as a result of neglect.
Atai said the money was their legitimate entitlement and therefore government had no right to deny them the salary till date, as it was one of the meagre finances they get to cater for the socio- economic needs of their families.
She posited that SSANU and NASU were essential stakeholders in the university system, contributing more than 60 per cent of what was required to keep the institution going to the point of graduation and as such would not succumb to the spate of injustice to deprive them of their rights.
“We are saying no to injustice, we are saying enough is enough, we are saying release our four months salary, we are saying we are legitimate staff of the university.
“We contribute to the graduation of every student in the university, we screen the students and without the non-teaching staff, the welfare of the students would have been in serious jeopardy”. Atai said.
She condemned the victimization of their members and urged stakeholders in the education sector to intervene by urging the government to release the four months withheld salary to avert another round of industrial action that would disrupt the university system.
JAC said it would have gone on strike, but had to write to the minister of education, minister of labour, the accountant-general and the Ministry of Budget and other stakeholders in the education sector, expressing their displeasure over pressure to embark on strike.
The unions noted that the one day protest was to remind government that JAC had followed due process on steps taken and had exhausted all legitimate options necessary to avert strike, stressing that if at the end of the protest nothing was done, the joint committee would embark on an indefinite strike.
JAC urged the Federal Government to set up the Federal Government /unions re- negotiation committee to handle specific aspects of financial benefits of university workers, this, they stated, was to make the committee effective as its chairman, Professor Nimi Briggs, had died.
The union also called on the Federal Government to pay N 50 billion arrears of Earned Allowance owed JAC members and to sustain the payment of wage award pending the approval and payment of the new minimum wage.
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