The Federal Government has proposed a 40 per cent salary increase for university lecturers under the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) as both parties prepare to resume negotiations in Abuja, BizWatch Nigeria has learnt.
The offer was presented ahead of a fresh round of talks scheduled to reconvene next week, led by former Head of Service, Yayale Ahmed, who is heading the government’s negotiation team.
ASUU’s National Executive Council (NEC), which met in Abuja on Sunday, agreed to return to the negotiation table. Branch leaders who attended the meeting are expected to brief members across the country on the government’s latest proposal.
A senior ASUU official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions surrounding the negotiation process, confirmed the development.
“They have made a proposal of a 40 per cent salary increment. Branch leaders will go back to update members. As it stands, negotiations continue next week,” the source said.
The union’s one-month ultimatum to the Federal Government expired last Saturday, raising anxiety within public universities over a possible strike. In an effort to avert an industrial action, government officials held a marathon meeting with ASUU leadership in Abuja on Monday, which extended into Tuesday.
Both sides have declined to divulge details of the closed-door discussions, citing strict confidentiality rules governing the process.
ASUU had earlier threatened a full-scale strike, accusing the government of employing a “nonchalant approach” toward longstanding issues affecting the university system. The union’s key demands include the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FG agreement, payment of outstanding salaries and earned academic allowances, and release of funds for university revitalisation.
Despite ASUU’s claims, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, who is currently out of the country, recently insisted that the government had substantially met the union’s requests. Speaking to State House correspondents two weeks earlier, Alausa reaffirmed President Bola Tinubu’s directive that industrial action in public universities must be prevented.
“The President has mandated us that he doesn’t want ASUU to go on strike, and we’re doing everything humanly possible to ensure students stay in school. We have met virtually all their requirements and are back at the negotiation table. We will resolve this,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has thrown its weight behind ASUU, warning that it will not hesitate to intervene if the Federal Government fails to honour its commitments to the academic union.
As negotiations resume, the academic community awaits concrete progress to avert another round of disruptions in the university calendar.
