The Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) and National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) at Kaduna State University (KASU) has rejected plans by the Kaduna State Government to implement the newly negotiated Federal Government agreement exclusively for academic staff.
The unions described the proposed arrangement as discriminatory, warning that excluding non-academic workers from the benefits of the agreement could create divisions among staff and threaten industrial harmony at the university.
The position was contained in a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by the JAC’s Acting Chairman, Comrade Aliyu Garba, and Secretary, Comrade Dahiru Musa, following an Executive Committee meeting held at the SSANU Conference Room, KASU, Kaduna.
The committee called on the state government to extend the implementation of the agreement to all recognised staff unions at the university, arguing that the institution’s operations depend on the combined contributions of academic and non-academic employees.
“It is worthy of note that all the universities that implemented the FGN agreements have done so for all the unions in their respective universities without discrimination.”
The unions urged the Kaduna government to adopt an inclusive approach that recognises the roles of all categories of workers in the development and administration of KASU.
They warned that selective implementation could deepen divisions within the workforce, stressing that no university could function effectively if any category of its employees was left behind.
The dispute follows recent negotiations between the Federal Government and university-based unions over improved conditions of service and other employment-related matters.
While academic unions have played a prominent role in negotiations with the Federal Government, non-academic unions have also continued to demand recognition and equitable treatment in agreements affecting university employees.
The KASU JAC argued that benefits arising from negotiated agreements should not be limited to one category of workers when the effective running of the university relies on both academic and non-academic staff.
“The university is a collective enterprise, sustained by contributions of academic and non-academic staff alike. No category of workers should be deliberately excluded from benefits arising from negotiated agreements.”
The unions therefore called on the Kaduna State Government to ensure equal treatment in implementing agreements reached between the Federal Government and university-based unions.
According to the JAC, extending the benefits to all recognised unions would promote fairness and help prevent avoidable industrial disputes at KASU.
The committee concluded with a unified position:
“We stand together. We speak with one voice. We will not be divided.”
It added:
“One university, one workforce, one struggle. An injury to one is an injury to all.”
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