LAUTECH ASUU begins warning strike

Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, (LAUTECH) chapter, has commenced a two-week warning strike over what it called “poor funding of the university by owners”.
The university is jointly owned by both Oyo and Osun state governments.
ASUU in a statement jointly signed by Comrades Biodun Olaniran and Toyin Abegunrin after its congress on Wednesday declared that LAUTECH chapter of ASUU had got the approval to embark on the warning strike from the national body of the union.
They said despite the Memorandum of Action (MoA) signed between the union and the Governing Council (GC) of the university after its eight-month old strike last year, government of the two states have reneged on fulfilling their own part of the deal.
They maintained that the two states headed by Senator Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo, and Rauf Aregbesola of Osun, only paid one out of the eleven months salary arrears owed the workers.
Recall that On February 13, 2018, LAUTECH ASUU signed a Memorandum of Action (MoA) with the governing council of the University.
“The signing of the MoA led to the suspension of the 8-month old strike on the February17, 2018.
One of the fundamental clauses of the agreement is the promise of the GC that ‘it will ensure that the governments (of Oyo and Osun states) will be made to be responsive to their legitimate responsibilities (funding inclusive) to the University’.
“The GC also promised to work out the modality of paying salary arrears, promotion arrears, earned academic allowances (EAA) as well as paying monthly salaries as and when due.
Out of eleven months salary arrears owed, only one month had been paid.
“The payment of monthly salary had become dwindling since May and nothing had been paid on promotion arrears and EAA.
The Union observed these reneges of the MoA on the part of the GC and the university administration and several correspondences were made to the duo of the university administration and GC to call their attention to the implications of reneging on the MoA,” he said.
He said that most of the time, the GC did not reply to their correspondence and whenever it did, the message had been ‘bear with us until the university finance improves.’ The latest of such correspondent to the GC was on July 5, 2018, but no reply was made.