FG Implements No-Work, No-Pay Policy for Striking ASUU Lecturers
The Federal Government has ordered that members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) engaged in the ongoing nationwide strike be denied pay for the period of work stoppage. The directive was issued in a circular dated October 13 and signed by Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa.
Alausa expressed the government’s disappointment over ASUU’s decision to launch a two-week warning strike starting October 13, despite ongoing negotiations and repeated calls for dialogue. He instructed vice-chancellors of federal universities to apply the no-work, no-pay policy to all striking lecturers.
“In line with labour laws, the Federal Government reiterates its position on enforcing the ‘no-work, no-pay’ policy for any employee who fails to carry out official duties during a strike,” the circular stated.
Vice-chancellors have also been directed to conduct roll-calls and physical headcounts of all academic staff, reporting on those actively performing their duties. Lecturers who are members of the Congress of University Academics (CONUA) and the National Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA), and who are not participating in the strike, are exempt from the directive.
The minister added that salaries of striking staff must be withheld, while the National Universities Commission (NUC) has been tasked with monitoring compliance and submitting a consolidated report to the Ministry of Education within seven days.
ASUU’s strike arises from disputes over lecturers’ working conditions, the 2009 FGN-ASUU agreement, unpaid salaries, and funding for the revitalisation of public universities. The government, however, maintains that all demands have been addressed and remains open to further negotiations to resolve the dispute.
