The College of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), has directed its members to go to work only twice a week after skyrocket.
The Union issued a statement showing great concern over the standard of living of its members amidst subsidy removal and claimed that the current salary can no longer satisfy them.
http://Subsidy: College Lecturers To Work Only Twice A Week Amidst Subsidy Removal/image//punch
However, the Union said its members will only resume fully when the government approved their demand for a 200% salary increment, which may help them sustain their lives amidst the hardship. They also declared that the subsidy removal has caused untold hardship to its members.
On Wednesday, the Union released a statement via its National President Dr Sam Olugbeko, suggesting its member could no longer survive the hardship, thus directing members to work twice and calling on the Federal government to intervene, especially on their salary.
“The implementation of the removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government two months ago raised the price of a litre of petrol by 250%. This worsened the inflationary rate on the cost of transportation, food, and other essential commodities and impoverished the Nigerian people. Workers, including staff of Colleges of Education, kept faith with the government and chose to endure the untold hardship thinking it would be only for a while as the government promised to roll out palliative measures including a significant increase in salaries. Alas! While our capabilities to sustain hope were already exhausted, the price of petrol rose further to N650 per litre. Now, the leadership of the Union has been inundated by members’ complaints that they could no longer go to work as a result of a hike in the price of petrol and the resultant high cost of transportation.
He also discussed on the issue of petroleum skyrocketing, while their salary remains stagnant for 13-years.
He said “The present salary of the Staff Union of Colleges of Education was approved in the year 2010 – 13 years ago! This means we have been on the same salary since 2010 while petrol prices rose intermittently from N65/N70 in 2010 to N650 in 2023 (tenfold increase). Our salary structure which is subject to renegotiation at 3-year intervals has remained static for 13 years, skipping four due renegotiations. It is ludicrous that the government has refused to return to the negotiation table prior to the fuel subsidy, had proposed a 200% increase in salary as against the government’s offer of a ridiculous 35% for Chief Lecturers and 23% for other cadres.”