The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at the Sa’adu Zungur University (SAZU), a Bauchi government-owned varsity, has submitted a comprehensive list of about eight grievances to the Bauchi government.
ASUU-SAZU noted that the eight-point-demands need immediate intervention to avert a looming industrial crisis in the institution.
The union in a statement signed by its Chairperson, Dr Auwal Hussain, outlined the pressing demands such as a series of unpaid entitlements and poor working conditions, which are causing a brain drain of qualified academic staff.
ASUU raised the absence of an exit policy at the university, which is required by law but has yet to be implemented by the management of the institution as another bone of contention`1.Â
The union also decried the non-payment of Earned Academic Allowances (EAA) and Excess Workload Allowances (EWL) dating back to 2012, with six years of arrears still outstanding.
It further said that 50% of the 2018/2019 workload allowance remains unpaid, and there has been no communication from the government regarding the settlement of this debt.
The union also revealed that allowances for the 2019/2020, 2021/2022, and 2022/2023 academic sessions have not been paid, with no explanation provided for the delay.
ASUU further pointed out that none of the deceased academic staff have had their death benefits disbursed to their families, exacerbating the financial burden on the bereaved.
Further, four years of arrears for the Consequential Adjustment remain unpaid, and the 25% and 35% wage awards promised to universities have not been implemented. The lack of compensation for postgraduate internal examiners was also highlighted as a significant issue.
“The University is haemorrhaging talent,” the union warned, noting that many PhD holders and other qualified academics are leaving due to the dismal working conditions.
ASUU emphasized that the university’s current recruitment drive for more PhD holders would fail without improved remuneration and working conditions.
The union called on Governor Mohammed to act swiftly by sending a visitation panel to assess the situation and to ensure the university and its staff are not left to further deteriorate.
WikkiTimes recalls that SAZU management, recently, disputed ASUU’s claims, saying that all allowances of academic staff have been paid. It also, without providing details, argued that staff of the university have pension and death benefit schemes provided for in the state civil service engagement rules.