ASUU loses salary battle as court upholds no-work no pay policy

The National Industrial Court has upheld the Federal Government’s policy of no-work no pay against the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which went on an eight-month-long strike over its demands.

The strike, which began in February 2022 and ended in October 2022, was the ninth in 13 years by the union, which has been fighting for improved funding and autonomy for public universities in Nigeria.

The government, however, refused to pay the salaries of ASUU members for the period of the strike, citing its policy of no-work no pay.

ASUU challenged the policy in court, seeking the payment of its members’ salaries from February 14 to October 7, 2022.

But the court, in a judgement delivered by its President, Justice Benedict Kanyip, dismissed ASUU’s claim and held that the government had the right to withhold salaries of workers who embark on industrial action.

Justice Kanyip said the policy of no-work no pay was a legal act and that ASUU did not prove that it was unlawful or unconstitutional.

The court, however, ruled that the government violated the university autonomy by imposing the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) platform on ASUU members, who had the right to determine how their salaries should be paid.

The court said the government should respect the agreement it signed with ASUU in 2020 to develop an alternative payroll system that would accommodate the peculiarities of university lecturers.

The judgement has elicited mixed reactions from different stakeholders.

Some have commended the court for upholding the rule of law and discouraging incessant strikes by ASUU, which have disrupted academic activities and affected students’ welfare.

Others have criticised the court for endorsing the government’s policy of no-work no pay, which they said was unfair and unjust to ASUU members who were fighting for a noble cause.

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Patrick Odey

Patrick Odey, a native of Benin, Edo State. He studied the English Language at the University of Benin, Edo State. He is a Blogger Contact: [email protected]

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