The recurring industrial actions in the country have been traced to failure of the government to implement the agreements reached with unions in research institutions 10 years ago.
Associated Institutions (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Universities Teaching Hospitals Research Institutes and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHRIAI) faulted the government for non-Implementation of the signed agreements.
Peters Adeyemi, the General Secretary of NASU, today 26th, disclosed this to newsmen in Abuja.
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Adeyemi lamenting, has found fault with the government who have only reached agreement with the unions in a bid to call off strikes and never with the intention to fulfill the agreements.
Also Read: Varsity Staff Say No Going Back On Planned Industrial Action
Adeyemi said that the bulk of industrial crises that have taken place in Nigeria was due to refusal of the Federal Government to implement agreements bona fide that they willingly reached with the unions.
He added that government who signs Memorandum of Agreements MoA, and Memorandum of Understanding MoU, thereby problematize the issue day by day.
Reneging on the agreements by the government will also bring about many more strikes which would be legally right on the part of the union to prosecute.
The Gen Sec further said that the inclusion of timelines in agreements was to assure binding by implementation timetable, but he was contrite that this had not also helped the situation.
In the same vein, President of SSAUTHRIAI, Mr Akintola Benjamin had to say that the Federal Government had lackadaisically reacted to the agreements they signed with the unions.
In addition to the matter in contention is withdrawal of circular on non-skipping of salary grade level 10 as the President disclosed.
He said that judgement was though given in favour of research sub-sector on the issue of implementation of non-skipping yet, the Federal Government has not implemented the policy service-wide.
Another issue in contention is failure to implement the retirement age of 65 years, as it applies to the Nigerian universities, in the research institutions.
Akintola’s statement reads:“In the universities, the retirement age is 65 years for both academic and non-academic staff. The scheme that the research institutes run is the same with that of the universities. The Colleges of Education and Polytechnics are enjoying the 65 years retirement age.”
He added: “We are asking that both research and non-research staffers should also enjoy 65 years retirement age. The academic staff in research institutes are already enjoying this. We are saying it should be extended to all the staff, in order to stem migration from research institutes to other sub-sectors.”
