Edo Polytechnic Workers Cry Out ‘We’ve Been Abandoned’ Demand Governor’s Intervention

Edo Polytechnic Workers Cry Out ‘We’ve Been Abandoned’ Demand Governor’s Intervention

The combined unions of Edo State Polytechnic, Usen, which include the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Non-Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (NASUP), and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics (SSANP),…..CONTINUE READING 

have expressed their dissatisfaction over the four months of unpaid salary arrears owed to the institution’s staff.

According to the unions, the last salary disbursed was for May, and even that was only paid in September.

Speaking at a press briefing in Benin City, the ASUP Chairman, Dr. Akhere Ekhomun, voiced concerns about the staff not benefiting from the new N70,000 minimum wage that has been implemented across the state’s core civil service, as well as previous minimum wage increments introduced by previous administrations.

Ekhomun highlighted that the special salary scheme designed to attract professionals to academia has been neglected, leaving the staff of Usen Polytechnic as some of the lowest-paid in the state.

“Edo State government paid a 13th-month salary to all workers at the end of 2023, but Usen Polytechnic has never benefited from wage reviews or increments,” he lamented, adding that the institution is also the only state-owned entity not benefiting from a pension scheme.

While stressing that the press briefing was not intended to criticize the current Edo State government, Ekhomun called on Governor Godwin Obaseki to address the issues affecting the welfare of Usen Polytechnic staff.

“We are appealing to Governor Obaseki to resolve these welfare issues that are demotivating our workers. Doing so before he leaves office would be a lasting parting gift to the institution,” he concluded.