Workers in Plateau tertiary institutions commence warning strike

Workers at seven state-owned tertiary institutions in Plateau State commenced a three-day warning strike on Monday, disrupting academic and administrative activities across the affected schools.

The industrial action is being coordinated by the Joint Union of Plateau State Tertiary Institutions (JUPTI), which is protesting the state government’s failure to implement agreed salary increments and address other long-standing welfare demands.

The institutions affected by the strike are the College of Nursing Sciences, Vom; College of Health Technology, Zawan; Plateau State Polytechnic, Barkin Ladi; College of Arts, Science and Technology, Kurgwi; College of Agriculture, Garkawa; College of Health Technology, Pankshin; and the College of Education, Gindiri.

Speaking with journalists in Jos, the chairperson of JUPTI, Cirfat Yaknan, said the warning strike would last until Wednesday, stressing that the union would escalate the action to an indefinite strike if the government failed to take concrete steps to meet its demands.

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“We started a three-day warning strike on Monday that will last till Wednesday. If nothing is done to address our concerns, we will have no option but to proceed on an indefinite strike,” Mr Yaknan said.

He said the dispute centres on the failure to implement a 25 to 35 per cent salary increment for workers in state-owned tertiary institutions, in line with the Consolidated Tertiary Institutions Salary Structure (CONTISS) and the Consolidated Polytechnic and Colleges of Education Academic Staff Salary Structure (CONPCASS).

According to the union leader, JUPTI had engaged the Ministry of Education and the Office of the Head of Service in a series of meetings, during which the state government reportedly offered a lump sum of N100 million monthly as a salary increment for workers across all state-owned tertiary institutions.

Mr Yaknan said the union rejected the proposal, describing it as inadequate and inconsistent with the agreed salary structures. He added that government officials had earlier informed the union that implementing a 25 to 30 per cent increment would cost more than N246 million per month, while full implementation of JUPTI’s demands would require over N371 million per month.

“The issue of salary increment has been pending since January 2023. We have written several letters and issued ultimatums, but nothing concrete has been done,” he said.

The JUPTI chairperson recalled that the union embarked on a seven-day warning strike in March 2025 but suspended the action three days later, following appeals by the government and assurances that the matter would be resolved.

He added that the union also shelved a planned strike on 15 March, after senior government officials appealed for more time, citing the governor’s official trip to the United Kingdom with President Bola Tinubu.

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“Since the governor returned, nothing has changed. That is why we are left with no option than to resume industrial action,” Mr Yaknan said.

Efforts to reach the Secretary to the Plateau State Government, Samuel Jatau, and the state Head of Service, Stephen Pam Gadong, were unsuccessful, as calls to their mobile phones were unanswered as of press time. Messages sent to them had not been responded to.

The warning strike has raised concerns among students and parents with academic calendars across the affected institutions affected/ However, the union insisted that only a clear commitment to implement the agreed salary structure would restore normalcy.