Aviation unions, including the National Union of Air Transport Employee Association of Nigeria, the Association of Nigerian Aviation Professionals, and the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations and Technical and Recreational Employees, have instructed Nigeria Meteorology Agency staff to begin strike action on Monday, May 20, 2024.
This was disclosed in a letter dated 14 May 2024, obtained by our correspondent on Wednesday.
The strike stems from management’s failure to address 45 months of minimum wage arrears and consequential adjustments for staff members.
The union, represented by the three General Secretaries: Ocheme Aba, Abdulrasaq Seidu, and Waheed Sikiru, wrote a letter addressed to NiMET’s Director General, Prof Charles Anoske, with the subject line ‘Re: Failure to Pay 45-Month Arrears of Minimum Wage Consequential Adjustment—14 days ultimatum.’
The ultimatum had been issued, and management responded with what seemed like a compromise: paying off the 45 months of arrears in installments
They also expressed their dismay that the agency’s staff has been awaiting the palliative payments sanctioned by the Federal Government since October 2023. Furthermore, they highlighted that the 25-35 per cent salary increase has not been implemented for them, alongside NiMET’s exclusion from receiving Peculiar Allowances.
“Furthermore, our Unions through a joint letter dated 4, April 2024, did request for review of the outdated conditions of service. To date the management has deemed our Unions unfit for any response,” it read.
