Chris Ochayi
30 June 2008
Lagos — The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) is set to launch its full-scale nationwide industrial action tommorow following failure by the Federal government to issue approval circular on the new Teachers Salary Structure (TSS).
The teachers in Nigeria's primary and secondary schools had in the course of their struggle for the implementation of the TSS embarked on 3-day warning strike two weeks ago, which opened a negotiation between their leadership (NUT) and the Federal government.
It was based on the assurances from the negotiation tables that the NUT decided to shelve further strike action on the wage review to allow government ample opportunity to address the issue.
Following the inability of the Federal government to issue the circular, the NUT yesterday in Abuja said they are resuming the suspended strike midnight Sunday. It accused the Federal Government of reneging on the promise to issue an enabling circular creating the Teachers Salary Structure (TSS).
The Deputy National President of NUT, Mr. Onem Nelson Onem who addressed labour correspondents at the Labour House in Abuja, said with effect from 12 midnight yesterday, principals, head teachers and teachers of primary, secondary and command schools have been directed to withdraw their services.
"With effect from 12 midnight on Sunday June 29th, 2008, principals head teachers and teachers of primary, secondary, technical, unity, special and command schools will withdraw their services" he said.
"There will be no teaching, invigilation or marking of internal and external examinations and no state of the federation is exempted from the union's directive".
He said the teachers are aggrieved that government has shown no respect for collective agreements arrived through negotiations having jettisoned the agreement it reached with teachers along with state governments on the new salary only to propose another stakeholders parley.
The teachers criticized the decision of the federal Executive Council to the effect that the teachers Salary Structure would be subjected to another round of negotiations through a stakeholders' discussion.
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and members of the labour civil society coalition said they would all offer full support to the strike action embarked upon by the teachers to ensure its effectiveness.
NLC's Deputy Secretary-General, Comrade Olaitan Oyerinde who deplored the role of the Labour Minister, Dr. Hassan Muhammad Lawal in the teacher's struggle, accused him of fueling the crisis rather than negotiating for a peaceful settlement.
He said NLC would soon move against the Minister of Labour for abandoning the Ministry's traditional role of intervening on labour-related crisis fostering of dialogue and negotiations between workers and employers.
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