The federal government and the leadership of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) will meet today with a view to put an end to the strike embarked upon by the union on December 24 last year as a result of the sacking of teachers of University Staff schools.
National President of the union, Comrade Samson Ugokwe, told our correspondent on phone that the Federal Ministry of Education has invited them for talk over the strike action, which he said, has already commenced in all universities.
He said: “The Ministry of Education has invited us for talk on January 19. They asked whether we were around and I told them I was in the village. They wrote a letter which is with us. Apart from that, they are making frantic efforts to meet with us this weekend. They have contacted me and by God’s grace, we are meeting this Sunday.”
The labour leader described as contradictory government decision to employ 500,000 teachers while asking universities to sack teachers in their staff schools.
He asked: “We want to know why some are being asked to go and others are coming. Is that employment or what? Are they sacrificing our people to help other people? We want to find out the policy of government on this. If they are employing teachers and pushing out others, then there is a contradiction.
“The schools we are talking about is for the welfare of staff of the universities and it is a project that benefits the universities and their host communities and they are as old as most of the universities.”
The union had given a December 24, 2015 deadline to the government to withdraw the circular directing Vice Chancellors of the federal universities to terminate the appointment of staff of University staff schools by the National Salaries, income and Wages Commission.
Part of their grievances also included the directive directing all health workers in the employment of the universities to migrate to Consolidated Health Salaries Structure (CONHESS) for Health Workers and Consolidated Medical Salaries Structure (CONMESS) for Medical doctors from the current Consolidated Tertiary Institution Salaries Structure (CONTISS).
Ugokwe said university staff schools are integral part of the university system established as welfare and municipal services for scholars and staff, pointing out that university staff schools are not peculiar to Nigerian universities alone, as they are regarded as part and parcel of community service of the universities.
He said further that university staff schools are part of the university culture which cannot be tampered with since schools and their personnel are products of legal processes having been duly employed by the governing councils.
He noted further that implementing the directive would be a gross violation and breach of the SSANU/FGN 2009 agreement, which states that universities shall bear full capital and recurrent costs of university staff primary schools. he federal government and the leadership of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) will meet today with a view to put an end to the strike embarked upon by the union on December 24 last year as a result of the sacking of teachers of University Staff schools.
National President of the union, Comrade Samson Ugokwe, told our correspondent on phone that the Federal Ministry of Education has invited them for talk over the strike action, which he said, has already commenced in all universities.
He said: “The Ministry of Education has invited us for talk on January 19. They asked whether we were around and I told them I was in the village. They wrote a letter which is with us. Apart from that, they are making frantic efforts to meet with us this weekend. They have contacted me and by God’s grace, we are meeting this Sunday.”
The labour leader described as contradictory government decision to employ 500,000 teachers while asking universities to sack teachers in their staff schools.
He asked: “We want to know why some are being asked to go and others are coming. Is that employment or what? Are they sacrificing our people to help other people? We want to find out the policy of government on this. If they are employing teachers and pushing out others, then there is a contradiction.
“The schools we are talking about is for the welfare of staff of the universities and it is a project that benefits the universities and their host communities and they are as old as most of the universities.”
The union had given a December 24, 2015 deadline to the government to withdraw the circular directing Vice Chancellors of the federal universities to terminate the appointment of staff of University staff schools by the National Salaries, income and Wages Commission.
Part of their grievances also included the directive directing all health workers in the employment of the universities to migrate to Consolidated Health Salaries Structure (CONHESS) for Health Workers and Consolidated Medical Salaries Structure (CONMESS) for Medical doctors from the current Consolidated Tertiary Institution Salaries Structure (CONTISS).
Ugokwe said university staff schools are integral part of the university system established as welfare and municipal services for scholars and staff, pointing out that university staff schools are not peculiar to Nigerian universities alone, as they are regarded as part and parcel of community service of the universities.
He said further that university staff schools are part of the university culture which cannot be tampered with since schools and their personnel are products of legal processes having been duly employed by the governing councils.
He noted further that implementing the directive would be a gross violation and breach of the SSANU/FGN 2009 agreement, which states that universities shall bear full capital and recurrent costs of university staff primary schools.