ASUU Fumes Over ‘Slim-fitted’ Payment of Check-off Dues by FG

The Academic Union of Universities (ASUU), has fumed over the ‘slim-fitted payment’ of check-off dues by the federal government.

Check-off dues refer to the money deducted from staff salaries by the employer and paid as membership fees to the union or organisation representing the workers.

The federal government deducts check-off dues from the salaries of all lecturers of federal universities as the fee for their membership in ASUU.

The dues are usually remitted to ASUU’s account after deduction from members’ salaries.

According to TheCable, the federal government only released half of the deducted dues to the union for the month of November.

Christian Opata, chairman of ASUU at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), confirmed the development to TheCable on Monday.

“It’s true. Well, I don’t have the records of all the universities, but judging by my own university (UNN), what we get as check-off dues do not reflect the number of academic staff we have in the university,” Opata said.

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“That happened even before Congress of University Academics (CONUA), that’s the situation.”

When asked about the particular month the check-off dues were not fully paid, he said: “It has been like that in my own university, let me say for the past six to seven months. In fact, since IPPIS started”.

When contacted, Emmanuel Osodeke, ASUU president, told TheCable he would revert after reaching out to the union’s branches.

“I need to get information on that from the branches. When I do that, I’ll let you know,” he said.

The ministry of labour and employment had earlier attributed the withheld dues to the failure of ASUU to submit its audit reports as required.

Lecturers under ASUU have been at loggerheads with the government since the strike ended, over non-payment of their salaries for the period the strike lasted.