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UNN non-teaching staff join nationwide strike
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU), under the Joint Action Union (JAU), Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) Bauchi Branch, yesterday protested against disparity in payment of allowances between non-academic and academic members of staff.
The protesters, at the institution’s entrance yesterday, displayed placards with various inscriptions such as “We are stakeholders, we need equal treatment,” “We say no to NUPEMCO,” “Implement the 2009 agreement to the fullest,” “FGN, resume negotiations with JAC,” among others.
The JAU Chairman, ATBU; Austin Jadi, who led other members of the two unions, said: “Last time, we asked the government that this issue of selected payment should not be introduced any longer into the university system, but today, we wake up to discover that the government has set in a percentage formula which is academic staff 80 per cent and the three non-teaching unions in the university 20 per cent.
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“This is unacceptable and we reject it in totality.”
In a related vein, the non-teaching staff of University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) yesterday joined the nationwide protest declared by their national body.
Members of the unions, which include NASU, SSANU and NAAT, under the auspices of JAC, staged a peaceful protest at the premises of the university.
Chairman of UNN-JAC, Mr. Paul Eruah, who spoke with newsmen, said the protest was in line with the directive of the National Executive Council (NEC) of JAC.
He said that the unions would not return to work until their conditions were met, adding: “We are also saying no to joining Nigeria University Pension Management Company until the demands of our union are met.”
