ASUU-PLASU Challenges University Over Unilateral Pay Change

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) at Plateau State University (PLASU) has formally challenged the university administration’s decision to implement a specific amount for Earned Academic Allowance (EAA) payments without union agreement.

In a statement released Thursday by Branch Chairman Dr. Monday Hassan Zitta and Secretary Lomka Iliya Kopdiya, the union declared the matter “serious” and “contentious,” warning it could lead to industrial action.

ASUU-PLASU explained that EAA is traditionally calculated and paid at the end of an academic session. This calculation is based on the staff-to-student ratio after teaching, assessment, and project supervision duties are completed.

The statement noted that in 2021, following a strike, the previous Plateau State Government significantly increased the university’s monthly subvention specifically to cover EAA payments. However, ASUU-PLASU alleges the university administration used these increased funds for other purposes.

To address ongoing delays and disputes, the union stated it “magnanimously agreed” to a proposal: instead of the sessional computation, EAA payments should be incorporated into monthly salaries. ASUU-PLASU emphasized this mainstreaming approach has been successfully implemented in other state universities under mutually acceptable conditions.

The union criticized the PLASU administration, stating that instead of acknowledging this concession, authorities ignored union correspondence on the matter. They then unilaterally imposed what ASUU-PLASU describes as a “token amount” for the mainstreamed EAA. The union contends this amount is the lowest compared to other state universities using the monthly payment method.

ASUU-PLASU demands the administration either revert to the original sessional computation method or implement the “justifiable and reasonable amount” recommended by the union, as outlined in the Professor Bulus Gyang Committee’s report. Additionally, the union insists the university must pay the outstanding 50% of the 2023/2024 EAA and address all unresolved issues from previous agreements between ASUU and the Plateau State Government.