The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has asked the Federal Government to honor the Collective Bargaining Agreements reached with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other tertiary institution unions.
Mr Ayuba Wabba, the NLC President, made the call in the 2022 Easter message to workers and Nigerians with the theme, “Hope That Never Dies’’, on Monday in Abuja.
According to him, millions of Nigerian university students, especially those attending public citadels of higher learning, are celebrating Easter outside the precincts of their campuses.
“This is not by reason of choice but because our country cut short their hopes.
“The inability of the government to deliver on commitments it reached with our university workers, both academic and non-academic, has ensured that the streak of instability battering and buffeting our tertiary education system remains unresolved.
“It is even most tragic that the majority of the affected students are children from poor homes whose parents cannot afford to pay the outrageous fees charged by private universities.
“Tragically, while students from poor homes are held back by frustrating cycles of strike actions, the children of the rich and powerful are in private campuses learning.
“There is no sadder premiere of the Social Apartheid in our society than the intermittent and protracted strike actions in our public universities,’’ he said.
He, therefore, added “we demand respect for Collective Bargaining Agreements signed with unions in our tertiary institutions and other sectors.”
Wabba also noted that many workers in Nigeria are yet to enjoy the national minimum wage almost four years after it was signed into law, noting that Cross River, Taraba and Zamfara are the states yet to implement the national minimum wage.
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