Sanwo-Olu needs extra N560m monthly to meet workers’ demand
By Alade Adisa
The ongoing industrial action by workers at the Lagos State University, LASU, Ojo, may not end soon, as the state government requires additional N560 million monthly to meet the demand by the workers for enhanced salaries.
Investigation by New Daily Prime showed that the state government is in dilemma of how to meet the additional expenditure without asking the management of the school to raise fees or levies.
Also, the state government, which is thinking of turning the College of Medicine of the university in Ikeja to a full blown medical university, is facing constraints regarding the huge cost that will be involved.
Apart from the monthly additional cost, our correspondent gathered that the workers are not happy that though Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced N85,000 as the new minimum wage, the salary template prepared indicated N40,000.
LASU workers, both teaching and non-teaching, under the auspices of the Joint Action Committee, JAC, began an indefinite strike on December 6,2024 and the management of the university hurriedly announced a four-week Christmas break to end on January 6, 2025.
The striking workers are members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, the National Association of Academic Technologists, NAAT, and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Allied Institutions, NASU.
LASU workers are complaining that their salaries are lower than those of their colleagues in Lagos State University of Science and Technology, LASUSTECH and the Lagos State University of Education, LASUED. The three universities are owned by the Lagos State government.
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The workers are angry that a Chief Lecturer 111 in LASUED (formerly a College of Education) would be earning more than a professor in LASU.
Commenting on the development, Prof. Ibrahim A. Bakare, ASUU Chairman, Comrade Oluwaseyi Lawal, SSANU Chairman, Comrade Dr. Olujimi Adejo, NAAT Chairman and Comrade Obafemi Sanni, NASU Chairman, expressed disgust at the poor treatment being meted out to the workers.
“For the records, below are the three major demands by the staff unions. These demands are as follows: Implementation of the 25%/35% salary Increase for all staff of tertiary institutions in Lagos State based on the agreement between the Federal Government and the Staff Unions in those institutions which is expected to be domesticated in the state universities.
“Harmonisation of salary disparity between members of staff of Lagos State University and those of other state-owned tertiary institutions of Lagos State.
“Implementation of the New National Minimum Wage for our members in line with the relevant procedures and processes as approved by the National Minimum Wage Law (2024).”
“We pray that a timely and immediate intervention of Mr. Governor will save our University – the Lagos State University – from the current industrial action while counting much on his Executive Approval to quicken the implementation of our demands for improved welfare for the entire Staff Union members of Lagos State University.”
Also, the workers complained that the staff buses given them by the state government in 2008 had become rickety and unserviceable and called on the governor to look into their plight of having to commute to school daily paying exorbitant transport fares.
