BREAKING: Court orders ASUU back to classrooms
The National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), on Wednesday ordered the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), to end its ongoing industrial action.
Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, had dragged the union to the Industrial Court on behalf of the Federal Government to intervene on than seven months’ strike.
The resort to go to court followed the failure of dialogue between the union and the Federal Ministry of Education.
The government asked the NICN to inquire into the legality or otherwise of the prolonged strike by ASUU. It asked the court to interpret in its entirety the provisions of Section 18 LFN 2004, especially as it applied to the cessation of strike once a trade dispute is apprehended by the Minister of Labour and Employment and conciliation is ongoing.
The NICN was to interpret the provisions of Section 43 of the Trade Dispute Act, Cap T8. LFN 2004, titled “Special Provision with Respect to payment of wages during strikes and lock-outs.”
Ngige said this “specifically deal with the rights of employees/workers during the period of any strike or lock-out.
“Can ASUU or any other union that embarked on strike be asking to be paid salaries even with clear provisions of the law.
“Determine whether ASUU members are entitled to emoluments or ‘strike pay’ during their period of strike, which commenced on February 14.
“Moreso, in view of our national law as provided in Section 43 of the TDA and the International Labour Principles on the right to strike as well as the decisions of the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association on the subject,” he said.
ASUU members commenced a nationwide strike on February 14, 2022, to press home their demands for the Federal Government to improve the funding and equipment of universities and increase remunerations of lecturers.
