Article summary
- The court while upholding the no work no rule said the Federal Government has the right to withhold salaries of workers who embark on strike.
- The court, however, said it is a violation of University Autonomy for the Federal Government to impose the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) platform on members of ASUU.
The National Industrial Court has upheld the no work no pay rule by the Federal Government in the suit filed against the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).
In what appears as a setback for the university lecturers who had their salaries withheld for the period they were on strike, the court said the no work no pay rule enforced by the Federal Government against members of ASUU last year is perfectly legal.
FG can’t impose IPPIS on ASUU members
In a judgment delivered by the President of the Court, Justice Benedict Kanyip, the court held that it is within the right of the Federal Government to withhold salaries of workers who embark on industrial action.
The court however held that it is a violation of University Autonomy for the Federal Government to impose the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) platform on members of ASUU who reserve the right to determine how their salaries should be paid.
Backstory
ASUU members embarked on a strike on February 14, 2022, to press home their demands on the federal government.
Some of the lecturers’ demands include funding for the revitalization of public universities, payment of earned academic allowances, and adoption of the University Transparency Accountability Solution (UTAS) as a preferred payment option instead of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS). Other demands include payment of promotion arrears and the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, had dragged ASUU to the National Industrial Court, seeking an order of the court to restrain striking lecturers from further continuing with the strike.
What you should know
Despite a ruling by the National Industrial Court on September 21, 2022, ordering them to return to work, the university lecturers remained adamant and subsequently filed an appeal against the court ruling.
After no breakthrough in negotiations between ASUU and the federal government, the Appeal Court ordered the striking lecturers to resume duty immediately.
The Court also granted ASUU “conditional leave to appeal the order of the Industrial Court, while insisting that ASUU must obey the order of the lower court with effect from October 7”.
Consequently, ASUU, in compliance with the Appeal Court order called off its strike earlier in October.
The federal government, however, insisted that the lecturers will not be paid for the 8 months that they were on strike, insisting on its ‘no work no pay’ policy.
Ngige, in defense of the half salary paid to the lecturers in the month of October, said that they were paid on a pro-rata basis for the 18 days they worked.