Govt seeks industrial harmony in varsities, to pay withheld salaries

Federal Government is engaging university staff associations to explore ways of addressing grievances and implementing outstanding agreements to ward off industrial strikes, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has said.

The minister stated this, yesterday, in Abuja at the third quadrennial delegates’ conference of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU).

Although two months out of the outstanding four months withheld salaries of non-teaching staff of universities were paid recently, the minister pledged swift payment of the remaining two months in no distant time.

He added: “This is why we are actively engaged in dialogue with university staff associations, seeking to address grievances and implement agreements effectively. We understand that the future of our education system hinges on collaboration, mutual respect, and accountability. When agreements are respected, we foster an environment where education flourishes, staff are motivated, and the aspirations of our young people are realised.”

Alausa stressed that industrial harmony and constructive dialogue were fundamental to national development, saying collective bargaining was not just a right, but a vital mechanism for ensuring fair treatment, transparency, and the smooth functioning of institutions.

The minister noted that government was committed to promoting industrial peace across universities and staff welfare, recognising that when properly negotiated and implemented, would translate into a more productive and stable academic environment.

He explained that digital repository, out-of-school children education, teachers’ training and development as well as development and skills acquisition were policies designed to accelerate Nigeria’s journey toward a more inclusive, efficient, and quality-driven higher education system.

President of SSANU, Mohammed Ibrahim, said the university-based unions were not to blame for the incessant strikes witnessed in the universities in the past few decades, blaming successive governments for their unwillingness to implement agreements they freely entered into.

In particular, Ibrahim said the last four years had been traumatic for workers in the universities as workers suffer irregular payment of salaries. He said: “More recently, we have had to further deal with government policies that have impoverished the already downtrodden Nigerian workers, thereby subjecting them to an almost slavish existence.”

In his goodwill address, Chairman of the Association of Registrars of Nigerian Universities (ARNU), Ife Oluwole, urged the union to pursue a harmonious and productive partnership to foster open communication and transparency, support workers’ growth and development, and uphold labour standards and best practices.