NLC To Issue Strike Notice To Abia State Government

Posted by Factnews | 7 years ago | 1,942 times



The Chairman of Abia state branch of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Comrade Uchenna Obigwe has said that the union will this week issue a strike notice to the state government.

This is following the inability of the government to offset the backlog of salaries owed pensioners and staff of some parastatal in the state.

Comrade Obigwe made this known on MCL TV's breakfast programme “Good Morning Abia”, monitored by factnewsonline

 
It may not be out of place to describe the present period as a season of strikes.
Different industrial unions in the country both at the federal and state levels have embarked on strike due to two major reasons.

They are the failure of government to improve the welfare of its members and providing conducive working environment.  

At the federal level, University teachers on the platform of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) few days ago conditionally suspended its five week old strike.

It is not over as the union promised to return to the trenches on 31st October if the government reneged on its promise.

The health sector was not spared. The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) withdrew their services. Though the strike has been suspended, it paralyzed activities in government hospitals across the country.

However, the strike was not completely successful as some doctors declined to join the strike. This was the situation at Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia.

Also in the health sector, other industrial unions under the umbrella of Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) equally embarked on strike.

Recently, Abia was mentioned as one of the states in the country owing pensioners, teachers, local government workers and staff of parastatal.
The government has lived up to expectation in the payment of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA’s).

 
This has not been replicated in such institutions as Abia State University Teaching Hospital, Abia State Polytechnic Aba, School of Health Technology, local government areas and pensioners.

For instance, staff of Abia state Polytechnic Aba have not received any salary since this year as they are being owed nine months salary.

The usual reason has been lack of funds despite the release of the first and second tranche of the Paris Club Refunds from the federal to state governments.

The government had maintained that the funds were not enough to offset the salary arrears owed some category of civil servants.

Comrade Obigwe disclosed that he has received a directive from the national body to issue a strike notice to the state government.

He said labour cannot continue to watch as the affected workers suffer. This was in accordance with the labour union parlance; injury to one is injury to all.


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