The Nigeria Labour Congress has warned the Federal Government to meet the demands of the Academic Staff Union of Universities within four weeks or risk a nationwide shutdown.
NLC President Joe Ajaero issued the warning in Abuja on Monday after a meeting with leaders of unions in tertiary institutions. He said the four-week ultimatum would give the government enough time to address all unresolved issues, including the implementation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN agreement.
Ajaero said the NLC would commence an indefinite strike in solidarity with ASUU and other education-based unions if the government failed to act.
“If the Federal Government is sincere, we can end all industrial actions immediately. But if they continue to take labour for granted, we will have no choice but to shut down the country,” he said.
ASUU had last Sunday declared a two-week “total and comprehensive” strike after the expiration of a 14-day ultimatum issued on September 28.
The union’s president, Chris Piwuna, said the strike was due to the government’s failure to resolve issues concerning staff welfare, infrastructure, unpaid salaries, and the long-standing 2009 agreement.
But the Federal Government has criticised ASUU for the action, insisting it has addressed most of the union’s demands. It also directed universities to enforce the “No Work, No Pay” policy and to submit attendance records of academic staff during the strike.
