Pay Delay Triggers Public University Staff Strike From Monday
The University Academic Staff Union has directed its members not to work on Monday, April 3.
The Secretary General of the union, Constantine Wasonga, explained that this was because staff had not received their March salaries.
He called on all public university staff to go to the finance offices of their institutions and camp there until they received their salaries.
In addition to this, the union demanded that the government release all Vice Chancellors who were appointed in 2022 out of office. Wasonga argued that their stay was impeding development in universities.
The union further demanded that the Public Service Commission advertises for vacancies of the Vice Chancellor positions.
The union threatened that if their demands were not met, all university staff members across the country would down their tools.
On February 28, the Public Service Commission had published an advertisement in local dailies calling for applications for the positions of VC and Deputy Vice Chancellors in 10 public universities.
The notice stated that all applications should reach the Commission on or before March 20, 2023, by 5 p.m.
The union’s decision to call for a strike comes amid growing concerns over the state of affairs in public universities in the country.
In recent years, there have been reports of strikes and protests by university staff over issues such as poor working conditions, low salaries, and inadequate funding for research and other activities.
The union’s demands for the release of Vice Chancellors appointed in 2022 and the advertisement of vacancies for the positions is likely to fuel further debate over the role of universities in the country.
While some argue that the current Vice Chancellors have overstayed their welcome and are hindering progress, others contend that their removal could disrupt ongoing projects and initiatives.
It remains to be seen how the government will respond to the union’s demands and whether the strike will have the desired effect of bringing attention to the plight of university staff and the state of public universities in the country.
Pay Delay Triggers Public University Staff Strike From Monday