FG to Pay 2 Months Withheld Salaries to SSANU, NASU

FG to pay 2 months of withheld salaries to SSANU and NASU. Learn more about this significant development for university staff.

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) can expect to receive payment for two out of four months’ worth of withheld salaries soon, as it is anticipated that the Federal Government (FG) will commence this process in due course.

Approval from President Bola Tinubu is still awaited for this move.

The payment memo is pending approval from the President. In 2022, four university-affiliated unions – ASUU, NAAT, NASU and SSANU – undertook a strike in response to unresolved concerns with the government.

The duration of this industrial action varied; ASUU’s lasted eight months while NAAT went on for five and a half months. Meanwhile NASU and SSANU were both striking for four months each.

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During the strike, the past regime of President Muhammadu Buhari imposed the “No work, no pay” policy.

But upon assuming office, President Tinubu aimed to prevent any future strikes in tertiary institutions and proclaimed a pardon for university employees who had their salaries held back from them for four months. They would now receive payment.

In October of last year, when ASUU members received payment for four months in full, non-teaching staff unions such as SSANU and NASU viewed it as biased treatment.

The unions consequently set ultimatums and organized protests seeking the release of their withheld salaries.

President Tinubu has accepted organized labor’s demand for withheld salaries during a meeting on minimum wage. He instructed the Ministers of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, alongside Education to create payment methods.

NASU and SSANU are being recommended by the Ministry of Education to receive payment for two out of four months they were on strike, following ASUU’s payment structure. Prof. Tahir Mamman-led ministry has proposed the modalities for this recommendation while seeking approval from the President.

Currently, there is no information regarding the payment status for NAAT or how many months out of the five and a half withheld salaries it will receive.