OAU workers protest five-month withheld salaries, allowances

Members of the National Association of Academic Technologists, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife branch, on Wednesday, staged a peaceful protest over the non-payment of their withheld salaries for over five months and the arrears of allowances by the Federal Government.

The protesters, who had gathered on the university campus for the demonstration, also accused the Federal Government of reneging on the 2009 agreement it entered into with them.

Armed with placards bearing various inscriptions, they vowed not to back down until their entitlements were paid.

Briefing journalists shortly after the protest, the OAU NAAT chairman, Mr. Matthew Oluwaniyi, represented by his vice, Aminu Rotimi, said the salaries of union members had been withheld by the Federal Government due to the strike that lasted five and a half months in 2022.

Oluwaniyi also mentioned that members of the union had only received one month’s worth of the withheld salaries in October, noting that the Federal Government had failed to fulfil its promise.

He said, “We are here to express our grievances with the Federal Government of Nigeria regarding the treatment of our union. In 2022, university-based unions went on strike. Our union was on strike for five and a half months, and the Federal Government withheld our salaries for that period.

“Despite all our pleas, meetings, and negotiations with the Federal Government, our withheld salaries have still not been paid.

“Last week, we received an alert that seemed to indicate the payment of one of our five and a half months’ withheld salaries, but up till now, the Federal Government has not communicated with us.

“The Federal Government is also owing us arrears of allowances, which is why we are coming out to let people know that the Federal Government is not being fair to us.

“We signed an agreement with the Federal Government in 2009, and up until now, that agreement has not been fully implemented. One of the things the Federal Government failed to implement in the agreement is our occupational hazard allowance.”

Also speaking, the former secretary of the union at OAU, Dr Taoreed Adesiyan, lamented the shortage of workers in university laboratories across the country.

“We also have a dearth of workers in our laboratories. All our laboratories are understaffed. We are overworked, and our members are dying. We have repeatedly called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to employ more workers,” he said.