• Urges govt to meet union’s demand for salary adjustment

National leadership of Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU) has ordered members to go to work two days a week, until the Federal Government accedes to its demand for a 200 per cent pay raise.

It said the directive became necessary because of difficulties the members face in getting to work as a result of hike in price of petrol.

National president, Dr. Smart Olugbeko, disclosed this after the union’s extraordinary meeting in Abuja. He explained: “Implementation of fuel subsidy removal by the Federal Government, two months ago, raised the price of a litre of petrol by 250 per cent. This worsened inflationary rate on cost of transportation, food and other essential commodities and impoverished Nigerians. Workers, including staff of Colleges of Education, kept faith with government and chose to endure the untold hardship, thinking it would be only for a while, as government promised to roll out palliatives, including significant increase in salaries.”

According to him “the current salary of staff of Colleges of Education was approved in 2010. Thirteen years ago! This means we have been on the same salary, since 2010, while petrol price rose intermittently from N65/N70 in 2010 to N650 in 2023 (a ten-fold increase).

“Our salary structure, which is subject to renegotiation at three-year interval, has remained static for 13 years, skipping four due renegotiations. It is ludicrous that government has refused to return to the negotiation table on welfare package for staff, after the union, prior to removal of fuel subsidy, had proposed 200 per cent increase in salary, as against government’s offer of a ridiculous 35 per cent for chief lecturers and 23 per cent for other cadres.”

He said the leadership of the union had been inundated by members’ complaints that they could no longer go to work as a result of hike in the price of petrol and resultant high cost of transportation.

“Against this backdrop, it has become inevitable for the union to direct members to go to work only two days weekly, while an emergency meeting shall be convened to ratify this decision and decide on specific days of the week when members are to go to work.”