The Kwara Branch of Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools (ASUSS) has sued the state’s Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) at an industrial court sitting in Akure, Ondo State over what it described as illegal deductions.
Chairman of the group, Aduagba Mansur, and three others, on Monday, joined the State Teaching Service Commission, Commissioner for Finance, Head of Service (HoS), Attorney-General and the NUT in the suit marked, NICN/IL/13/202, while applying for issuance of originating summons in pursuance of Section 7(C) (V) and 12 of the National Industrial Court Act 2006.
The ASUSS boss told newsmen that his body had since 2020 communicated interest to discontinue its membership with the NUT to all concerned stakeholders.
“We have since 2020 seized to be members of the NUT,” adding: “It is disheartening to realise that the NUT never stopped deducting our check-off dues after we have since pulled out of the union.”
ASUSS accused the state’s Attorney-General of conniving with NUT to continue deducting the dues from source despite their alleged non-membership, “without our due authorisation.”
According to Aduagba, the group sought legal action to save the interest of over 9,000 members.
“We did not subscribe to the check-off dues being unlawfully deducted from our respective salaries into the coffers of the 5th defendant (NUT) and we, the claimants, are entitled to refund of same,” it said.
Subsequently, ASUSS prayed that the court directs the NUT based on combined effect of the provisions of Section 40 of the1999 Constitution (as altered) and Section 1244 of the Trade Unions Act, 2004 to stop the deduction.
It also sought the court’s order to mandate the defendants to render accounts of all the “unauthorised deductions and from their refund respective claimants and those represented.”
As part of the condition to ensure peace in the industry, ASUSS also sought a perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from further deducting from the salaries of the claimants without written instruction or authorisation.
In its argument, the union submitted that the defendants “flagrantly contravened the provisions of Section 40 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as altered); Section 12(4) of the Trade Unions Act and Section 5(4) of the Labour Act.”
State Chairman of TESCOM, Abubakar Bello Taoheed, said he would not respond to the development, stating: “The lawyers are handling it. I sincerely don’t have anything to say about it.”
In the same vein, State Chairman of the NUT, Yusuf Agboola, promised to get back to our reporter, saying: “I am coming, I am in a meeting, I will call you back,” which he never did at press time.
