Kaduna State University unions (KASU) have demanded the implementation of outstanding agreements, payment of arrears and increased funding for the institution amid renewed industrial tension.
The Joint Action Committee of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions and National Association of Academic Technologists, Kaduna State University branch, has asked the Kaduna State Government to implement outstanding agreements and settle welfare-related obligations owed university workers.
The unions also demanded payment of earned allowances, promotion arrears, pension arrears, wage awards and the applicable 25 per cent and 35 per cent salary increments.
The demands were contained in a communiqué issued after a meeting of the three unions at their secretariat in Kaduna.
The communiqué was signed by SSANU/JAC Chairperson Sa’adiyya Mustapha, SSANU Secretary Nicholas Allen Yakubu, NASU Chairman Nina Lami Ochigbo, NASU/JAC Secretary Dahiru Musa, NAAT Chairman Aliyu Garba and NAAT Secretary Bala Aboi.
The JAC said consistent implementation of agreements reached with university-based unions was necessary to build confidence, protect staff welfare and sustain industrial peace.
It specifically listed excess workload allowance, outstanding promotion arrears, group life insurance, pension arrears, salary increments and outstanding wage awards among the issues requiring government attention.
“The JAC therefore calls on the Kaduna State Government to urgently address these outstanding issues in the interest of industrial harmony and staff welfare,” the communiqué stated.
The renewed demands come as KASU faces a wider industrial relations crisis involving academic and non-academic staff.
The Academic Staff Union of Universities, KASU chapter, recently issued a two-week ultimatum over the non-implementation of the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU agreement, which the union said took effect in January 2026.
ASUU-KASU subsequently commenced a two-week warning strike after the ultimatum expired, citing unresolved issues including salary-related matters, promotion arrears, university autonomy and the 25 per cent and 35 per cent wage awards.
The Kaduna State Government has responded by setting up a nine-member negotiation committee to engage ASUU and other unions at KASU. It also approved a one-off N300m Earned Academic Allowance payment for academic staff.
The government said the intervention was part of efforts to address accumulated entitlements and preserve industrial harmony at the university.
The committee was given four weeks to examine the unions’ demands and recommend practical and financially sustainable solutions.
Against this backdrop, SSANU, NASU and NAAT urged Governor Uba Sani, who is also the Visitor to KASU, and other stakeholders to resolve the dispute involving a “sister union” through dialogue.
The unions warned that allowing the dispute to escalate could affect students, parents and workers and potentially trigger wider industrial action across the institution.
The JAC also called for substantially increased funding for KASU, arguing that inadequate financing could affect infrastructure, research, technological development, accreditation and the provision of teaching and learning facilities.
It further advocated greater administrative, financial and academic autonomy for the university, saying this would improve efficiency, transparency and accountability.
The latest development follows a series of tensions over staff welfare at KASU.
With the ASUU warning strike underway and the government’s negotiation committee reviewing demands from multiple unions, pressure is mounting on the Kaduna administration to reach settlements capable of preventing further disruption to academic and administrative activities at KASU.
