2 weeks ago
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The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), connected Monday, handed a four-week ultimatum to the national authorities to reason each ongoing negotiations with idiosyncratic unions successful the tertiary acquisition assemblage oregon look a nationwide concern enactment involving each affiliate unions.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, said the legislature had resolved to enactment intimately with the unions to guarantee the implementation of existing agreements and to propulsion for sustainable backing and just remuneration crossed Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.
The ultimatum followed extended deliberations with unions representing assemblage and polytechnic workers wherever the Labour Centre insisted connected a ‘No Pay No Work’ stance contrary to the earlier ‘No Work No Pay’ argumentation adopted by the Federal Government against the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU ) implicit the ongoing dispute.
Adressing journalists successful Abuja, Ajaero explained that the legislature would nary longer tolerate government’s representatives attending meetings without the mandate to marque binding commitments, noting that specified practices had worsened the situation implicit time.
He emphasised that aboriginal engagements indispensable pb to actionable outcomes, not specified promises.
The NLC’s determination comes amid renewed unrest successful the acquisition sector, pursuing ongoing onslaught enactment by ASUU and different world unions implicit the government’s nonaccomplishment to fulfill outstanding agreements.
Many of the issues stemmed from disputes implicit wage arrears, withheld allowances, and mediocre infrastructure funding.
In caller weeks, caller threats of concern enactment person emerged from non-academic unions specified arsenic NASU and SSANU, who accused the authorities of neglecting antecedently signed memoranda of knowing (MoUs).
Polytechnics and colleges of acquisition person besides raised akin grievances implicit mediocre backing and the hold successful implementing caller wage structures. The increasing discontent has placed the acquisition assemblage connected the borderline erstwhile again, with calls for urgent involution to avert different circular of strikes.
To code the issues, NLC further announced the instauration of a coordinated model to show the implementation of each outstanding agreements and to thrust a nationalist run for acquisition reform.
According to Ajaero, the legislature volition propulsion for adherence to UNESCO’s proposal that nations allocate astatine slightest 25 to 26 per cent of their yearly budgets to education.
He warned that nonaccomplishment to conscionable the four-week deadline would compel the NLC to mobilise each workers nationwide for a full shutdown, describing the determination arsenic indispensable to extremity the rhythm of breached promises and recurring strikes successful the sector.
Ajaero stated, “We person decided to springiness the national authorities 4 weeks to reason each negotiations successful this sector. If aft 4 weeks this dialog is not concluded, the organs of the NLC volition conscionable and instrumentality a nationwide enactment that each workers successful the country, each unions successful the country, volition beryllium involved.
“Henceforth, nary commercialized national successful the tertiary institutions oregon elsewhere volition be meetings with authorities officials who deficiency the mandate to marque decisions. The epoch of signing agreements and threatening unions has travel to an end.”
“The argumentation of ‘No work, No pay’ volition present beryllium met with ‘No pay, nary work’. You cannot origin a onslaught by failing to honour agreements and past punish those affected. That epoch is over,” the NLC president declared.
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