Tension As ASUU, UNIBEN Face Off Over Non-payment Of Full September Salaries

Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Benin (UNIBEN) branch, has threatened to take industrial and legal action over the alleged non-payment of the full September 2026 emoluments of its members.

The union, in a statement dated September 30 and signed by its Chairman and Secretary, Dr Enaruna Edosa and Lucky Aimiyekagbon, said it would convene a congress on October 5 to determine “appropriate and necessary action” if the outstanding emoluments were not paid in full by October 3.

The development has raised fresh concerns over industrial harmony in the nation’s university system, with ASUU-UNIBEN accusing the university management of attempting to negotiate directly with individual academic staff over the fractionalisation of their monthly emoluments.

The union described the alleged direct engagement with its members as “direct dealing” and a breach of Nigerian labour laws and international labour standards, urging the management to immediately discontinue the practice.

Citing International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions 87 and 98, ASUU-UNIBEN maintained that the right to organise and engage in collective bargaining was protected under international labour standards, insisting that a recognised union remained the legitimate bargaining agent for its members.

It warned that any individual agreement reached outside the union’s collective bargaining framework would be invalid and could amount to an unfair labour practice, while urging the university to withdraw any offers or undertakings already made to individual members.

To avert a breakdown of industrial harmony and possible recourse to the National Industrial Court, the union demanded that all future proposals, notices and negotiations on remuneration and conditions of service be channelled exclusively through the elected leadership of ASUU-UNIBEN.

ASUU-UNIBEN said it remained open to constructive social dialogue but demanded payment of all emoluments for work already rendered, noting that several federal universities, including the universities of Ilorin, Lagos, Port Harcourt and Bayero University, Kano, had reportedly paid the September components in full, and called on UNIBEN management to explain its inability to do the same.