Mr. Peters Adeyemi, General Secretary of NASU, said this
while addressing a news conference at the union’s ongoing National Executive
Council (NEC) meeting on Wednesday in Abuja.
Adeyemi said that NEC expects the federal government to make
arrangements for payment of the salary arrears.
According to NASU, since all parties within the University
system have suspended their industrial actions, it behooves on government to
start reviewing those hard stances it took while the tertiary institutions were
under lock and key.
“A moratorium was given to the federal government which will
elapse by November 2022.
“This should serve as a veritable opportunity for the
government to sit down and begin to address the existing demands by the unions,
one of which is the salary arrears, ’’he said.
Adeyemi also said that under no circumstance would the
government sweep the issue under the carpet, especially when the government
obliged the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) similar gesture
after they suspended their two-month strikes.
“I have confidence as a union person that those salaries
will be paid because it has been paid to the guys in the health sector which
was for two months.
“The Minister of Labour and Employment also facilitated the
payment and he is still there, I am confident he will facilitate this payment,
’’he said.
Earlier, Dr. Hassan Makolo, National President of NASU also
said that the decision to embark on strike does not come easy for unionists.
He added that trade unions do not just embark on strike to
play to the gallery, contrary to the erroneous belief of the public.
According to him, this is because it is done at great cost
to their members and the unions.
“Those who think it is easy to go on a strike should think
of staying for four, five, or more months without a salary or an income.
“Think of what that does to the household of a breadwinner
who is taking part in a strike without a salary, in terms of feeding, medicals,
transportation, children’s school fees, aged parents, and other relations to
cater for, as well as the landlord.
“Moreover, most of the children in public universities and
other tertiary institutions are our children.
“Whereas the children of our employers and other government
functionaries who are expected to resolve the grievances of unions in the
public sector are either studying in universities abroad or are in private
universities here at home, ’’he said.
He also noted that on the part of the union, the management
of the affairs of the union continues, including the management of the strike
without ‘ check-off dues.
He said that the actions and inactions of public officials
foisted a needless strike on members of NASU in the Universities and
Inter-University Centres.
He, therefore, said that the strike would not have started
in the first place if they did what was expected of them.
Hassan also said that the era of strikes would only be
mitigated effectively if collective bargaining in the educational and allied
institutions sectors are institutionalized.
He added that this was one of the demands they put before
the Federal Government, which members of the Federal Government Renegotiating
Team rejected.
He went further to state that government teams should always
come to the collective bargaining table with fidelity, including implementing
agreements it freely entered into with NASU.
“Over two months after the Agreement signed by the Federal
Government with the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of NASU and SSANU, that
resulted in the suspension of the four months old strike.
“We have observed that the processes expected to be put in
place for the actualization of the content of the Agreement are yet to be put
in place.
“We, therefore, use the opportunity of the ongoing NEC
meeting to call on the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu.
“He is to ensure that the processes for the implementation
of the Agreement commence immediately before the members of NASU will start
another round of agitation,’’ he said.
He also added that “we hope that some other industrial
relations issues within the sector which the government is aware of will be
amicably resolved within a minimum time frame.”
SANNU and NASU suspended their industrial action on August
20.
The unions had in March embarked on a nationwide strike over
what it called the nonchalant attitude of the government to their demands.
0 comments:
Post a Comment