The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige has presented certificates of registration to the Congress Of University Academics (CONUA) and the National Association Of Medical And Dental Academics (NAMDA), two breakaway labour unions from the Academic Staff Union Of Universities (ASUU).
Speaking at the official presentation of certificates to the two unions in Abuja, the labour minister warned the unions against incessant industrial action and urged them to embrace dialogue whenever they have a misunderstanding with their employers.
Ngige maintained that the Federal Government will continue to enforce the “no work, no pay” policy on any union that embarks on industrial action.
The presentation of these certificates of registration to the leaders of CONUA and NAMDA by the labour minister signified the birth of two labour unions in Nigeria’s academic system.
The two unions came into the limelight in October 2022 in the heat of an eight-month strike by ASUU.
The minister urged the new unions to operate within the provisions of the labour laws.
In their respective comments, the unions appealed to the government to pay their withheld salaries, saying their members were not on strike with ASUU last year.
The Nigerian university system has suffered serious setbacks in recent times, owing to incessant industrial actions by academic and non-academic staff, a development that has severally disrupted the academic calendar.