Reactions as FG Considers Partial Salary Payout For SSANU, NASU Members

The Federal Government has expressed its consideration to pay half of the withheld salaries to non-academic staff members of universities.

This decision is pending President Bola Tinubu’s approval of the payment of their salary arrears. The announcement was made by the Education Minister, Tahir Mamman, during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today.

This development follows a period of discontent among members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU). These unions had previously embarked on a one-week warning strike in March to voice their grievances over withheld salaries. They criticized the government for resolving the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU)’s withheld salary issues while leaving non-academic unions in the lurch.

The backdrop to this situation is a prolonged eight-month strike action taken by all unions in 2022, aimed at negotiating better welfare packages among other demands. The administration of the former President, Muhammadu Buhari, implemented a ‘No Work, No Pay policy’ in response to this strike. However, in a turn of events last October, President Bola Tinubu approved the release of four out of the eight months of withheld salaries, but this gesture was initially extended only to ASUU.

This selective payment led SSANU and NASU to accuse the Federal Government of unfair treatment and discrimination. The Education Minister, however, clarified that the government has been making concerted efforts to address their concerns and that the delay in payment approval was not intentional. He emphasized that the situation with ASUU, which received four months’ pay, was based on the President’s discretion and does not automatically apply to NASU and SSANU, although their case is under active consideration.

Regarding claims of discrimination by NASU and SSANU, the minister rejected such notions, attributing the misunderstandings to communication issues rather than deliberate exclusion. He stressed that all university staff, regardless of their roles, contribute towards the same overarching goal and should be seen in that light.