Workers of the National Assembly, under the aegis of the Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria, have commenced an indefinite strike over the non-payment of a backlog of salaries and allowances by the management.
PASAN issued the strike notice on Sunday via a statement issued by its Secretary-General, Hammed Awobifa.
In the statement titled, PASAN declares indefinite strike to demand full implementation of the revised conditions of service (2018), the association stated that the industrial action started after three notices to the management led by the Clerk to the National Assembly, Amos Ojo, within three weeks.
The statement read in part, “The Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria, National Assembly Service Commission and National Assembly (chapters), at its joint congress meeting (sic) of June 2, 2022, resolved to embark on an indefinite strike over the failure of the National Assembly management to implement the subsisting Memorandum of Understanding jointly signed by the NASC and NASS management and PASAN on April 13, 2021.
“PASAN had issued a communiqué on March 28, 2022, where it demanded the full implementation of the subsisting MoU and the revised conditions of service. It also notified the management of the National Assembly of 21 days, 14 days and seven days service of notice for industrial action if by May 31, 2022, the management of the National Assembly failed to comply with the congress resolution.”
PASAN listed the items in the MoU signed by the parties to include 24 months’ arrears of minimum wage/consequential adjustment in which the management paid only 16 months, leaving a balance of eight months and 13 days, and full implementation of the conditions of service in the MoU signed in April 2021, to which its implementation had started but stopped.
“In view of this unfortunate development, the association is embarking on an indefinite strike commencing from 12 midnight on Sunday, June 5, 2022,” the statement added.
The Clerk to the National Assembly, Amos Ojo, could not be reached on Sunday night to speak on the matter.
Calls made to his Special Adviser on Media and Labour, Austen Adesoro, who had earlier indicated that the management would react to the strike, did not connect.
Efforts to get the reaction of Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Benjamin Kalu, also proved abortive on Sunday night. He had yet to reply to a message sent to him as of the time this report was filed.. (Punch)
