‘No Pay, No Work’s – ASUU Threatens to Stop Services over Salary Arrears

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has warned that if the federal government doesn’t pay public university lecturers their withheld salaries within two weeks, they’ll stop working.

The President of ASUU, Emmanuel Osodeke said this in an interview on Channels Television on Thursday.

Osodeke emphasised the unfairness of only paying four out of seven-and-a-half months’ worth of salaries, stating that universities have covered the work missed during the 2022 strike and deserved full payments.

He said, “It’s not about paying four months out of the seven-and-half months’ withheld salaries.”

“Every university in Nigeria today is in the 2023/2024 academic year which means that by September/October, they will be in the 2024/2025 academic year.

“The implication of this is that all the work for which we were not paid when we were on strike, we have covered them by making sacrifices.

“None of our members have gone on leave in the past three to four years. We have not gone on vacation so that we can cover the work that we didn’t do while we were on strike which we have covered. You can check, and ask the students.

“But when you said you are paying four out of seven-and-half, I don’t think you are being fair to us.”

The ASUU president announced that the government’s two-week ultimatum started on May 13, 2024. He emphasised that ASUU members must receive full payment for the entire duration of the 2022 industrial action.

Highlighting the dire state of lecturers’ compensation, with many leaving due to low pay, Osodeke criticised the government’s priorities, citing large road contracts while university workers are unpaid.

Additionally, he raised concerns about the lack of functional governing councils in universities, leading to illegal processes.

Osodeke called for the conclusion of the 2017 agreement negotiations, the reinstatement of dissolved governing councils, and the payment of owed academic allowances.

This development follows an eight-month strike in 2022 and partial salary payments approved by Tinubu’s administration in 2023.

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