Despite the suspension of strike by workers in Osun State, lecturers in the four higher institutions, owned by the state, have said they will begin an indefinite strike on January 15, 2018, if the issues raised in their notice of strike are not resolved.
The lecturers, operating under the aegis of the Council of Academic Staff Unions of Osun State Owned Tertiary Institutions, are from the Osun State Polytechnic, Iree; Osun State College of Technology, Esa Oke, as well as Osun State Colleges of Education in Ilesa and Ila Orangun.
The CASUOSTI chairman, Mr. Olusegun Lana, said that they were not part of the labour strike and that the suspension of the workers’ strike would not, in any way, affect the strike notice given to Governor Rauf Aregbesola by the lecturers.
He said the issues raised in the notice of strike given by the lecturers included half salary; selective reinstatement of some of disengaged workers in the four institutions; pension issues; promotion and inadequate staffing.
Lana stated, “On the modulated salary regime, CASUOSTI congratulates the NLC for bringing the state government to fix an expiry date for it. Although our unions are not part of that unjust arrangement in the first place, we won’t overlook the slight consolation that it now has an expiry date – the second quarter of 2018.
“However, we still need to ask the government when and how the arrears would be paid. Apart from this, we have several peculiar issues still requiring urgent attention of the state government. These include the issue of unconsolidated allowances, that is peculiar; hazard and medical; 2014 promotion and migration; our yet-to-be-reinstated colleagues; 2016 leave bonuses and so on.
“Therefore, the notice of strike already served stands. As concurrently decided by our congresses, in the unexpected event that the issues we have registered remain unresolved, all members of academic staff in the four tertiary institutions shall commence a total and an indefinite strike from 15th January, 2018 to press home our demands.”
He said the lecturers gave a 21-day ultimatum to the state governor on the issues on November 7 and wrote many letters of appeal on the issues, stating that the state government had not called them for talks on the issues.
The labour leaders in the state, on Saturday, announced the suspension of the strike they embarked upon three days earlier following an agreement reached with the state government on salaries and other issues.
