FG, ASUP meet over strike notice

By Moses John

Abuja

The federal government and the leadership of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) hold crucial meeting over a 21-day strike notice given the union last week.
Blueprint gathered that the meeting which was on the instance of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, started on Tuesday spilled over to yesterday for all parties involved to come with their positions toward resolving the issues.
The demands are unpaid salaries in most of the state polytechnics and monotechnics, personal short falls in federal polytechnics and monotechnics, appointment of unqualified people as rectors and provost of polytechnics, monotechnics and collages of education.
Others are non-release of CONTISS 15 Migration Arrears, non-implementation of NEEDS assessment, among others.
A source at the meeting told our correspondent that the Ministry of Education was not properly represented at the meeting, adding that the workers would take government’s position to its NEC next week for consideration.
The source further said the union had resolved to down tools if the NEC directed that it was not satisfied with the way government was handling the matter.
He said government “cannot enslave the workers with their threat of implementing ‘no work, no pay,’ since it doesn’t keep an agreement it freely entered into with the union.”
Those in attendance were representatives of the Minister of Education, Salaries, Income and Wages Commission, Budget Office, Accountant-General of the Federation and the leadership of the union.

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