“The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) have jointly declared a seven-day warning strike to protest the withholding of their four months’ salary.
The decision to commence the warning strike was reached during a meeting of the unions’ joint action committee in Akure, Ondo State, last Thursday and Friday, with the declaration officially made in Abuja on Monday.
Mohammed Ibrahim, the National President of SSANU, addressed journalists and conveyed the unions’ grievances, emphasizing the necessity of the action due to the Federal Government’s refusal to pay their withheld salary for the four months during their nationwide strike in 2022.
Despite the recent release of the withheld salary to the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), the government has neglected SSANU and NASU, prompting dissatisfaction and protest from the unions.
In a communique issued on February 13, 2024, SSANU and NASU expressed their discontent to the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, and the Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, regarding the exclusion of non-teaching staff from the salary payment.
The unions strongly oppose the discriminatory treatment, which they perceive as a breach of the post-strike agreement with the government and a potential trigger for industrial unrest. They call upon the relevant authorities to promptly implement the President’s directive to pay all university-based unions the withheld four months’ salary.
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Moreover, the unions demand expedited action on the renegotiation of the new national minimum wage, citing the detrimental effects of hyperinflation on the current wage’s purchasing power.
In response to the government’s inaction, the unions have approved a one-week warning strike in collaboration with their sister union in the Joint Action Committee (JAC), NASU, to press for their demands and ensure the rights and welfare of their members are upheld.
This development underscores the ongoing challenges faced by university staff in Nigeria and highlights the urgent need for resolution and fair treatment in the higher education sector.”
