By Victor AhiumaYoung

Workers in the nation’s Research Institutes have decried the unpaid 12 months’ arrears of the negotiated salary structure in the Year 2010 between the Federal Government and through their Union, the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU.

They also lamented that the issue of 65 years retirement age for Non-Researchers in the Research Institutes remains unimplemented.

Speaking in Abuja, NASU’s President, Dr Makolo Hassan, said “Over a period of time, it has been the position of Government that technological development must be the way forward for the country. However, to achieve technological development, there is no way the Research Institutes will not be adequately supported and funded so that the outcome of their research work will assist in the attainment of Government objective in this direction and for that to happen, the workers in the Research Institutes must be adequately motivated, while the Research Institutes must be adequately funded. In addition, the collapse of infrastructure in the various Research Institutes should also be addressed.

“It is in this regard therefore that funding of Research Institutes; the enhancement of the welfare and well-being of the workers in the sector as well as the need to work on the decayed infrastructure in virtually all the Research Institutes must take priority over and above other issues that have to do with that sector.  It is unfortunate also that a substantial part of the Agreement that the Federal Government entered into with NASU remain unfulfilled. The 12 months’ arrears of the negotiated salary structure in the Year 2010 FGN/NASU Agreement remain unpaid even as this address is being delivered, while the issue of 65 years retirement age for Non-Researchers in our Research Institutes remains unimplemented.

“We therefore use this forum to call on the Federal Government to do the needful so that every part of the Agreement that is yet to be implemented is implemented for industrial peace and stability to reign.

There is equally the need to constitute a Government Negotiation Team to renegotiate the year 2010 FGN/JORAISU Agreement. We also appeal to the Federal Government to constitute the Boards of the Research Institutes to enhance their productivity.