BY TAIBAT UMMI YAKUBU

Workers in four tertiary institutions owned by the Kaduna State Government have threatened to shut down academic and administrative activities indefinitely if the state government fails to address their outstanding salary and welfare demands within 15 days.

The Joint Union of Tertiary Institutions of Kaduna State (JUTIKS) said it issued the ultimatum on October 27, warning that failure to meet its demands would leave the unions with no option but to embark on industrial action.

The union's chairman, Comrade Usman Shehu Suleiman, disclosed this on Monday during a press conference in Kaduna, where he accused the state government of delaying the implementation of several agreements affecting thousands of workers.

Among the major demands is the payment of the outstanding 30 per cent CONPCASS/CONTEDISS salary component, alongside the implementation of previously approved 25 and 35 per cent wage allowances.

The workers are also demanding an official establishment circular to formalise the approval granting non-teaching staff retirement at 65 years of age or after 40 years of service, as well as the exemption of Academic Earned Allowance (AEA) and other allowances from taxation.

Other outstanding issues include the implementation of the Consolidated Academic Tool Allowance (CATA) and Consolidated Non-Teaching Tool Allowance (CONTTA), as well as the payment of accumulated arrears of wage and tool allowances dating back to January 2026.

Explaining the salary dispute, Suleiman said the state government had earlier approved the conversion of workers' salaries from CONTISS to CONPCASS, but only 70 per cent of the adjustment was implemented.

He said Governor Uba Sani had promised that the remaining 30 per cent would be paid in the first quarter of 2026, but the commitment had yet to be fulfilled.

According to him, the outstanding allowances were also part of agreements reached between the national leadership of the affected unions and the Federal Government, some of which the Kaduna State Government had started implementing following the governor's intervention.

Suleiman acknowledged that the government had commenced payment of the CATA allowance but insisted that several other provisions remained outstanding.

Advertisement

On the retirement age issue, he said although the governor had announced the extension of the retirement age for non-teaching staff since last year, the government had yet to issue an official establishment circular to provide the necessary administrative framework for its implementation.

He also questioned the deduction of taxes from Academic Earned Allowance, arguing that the allowance should be exempted from taxation.

The JUTIKS chairman further claimed that some other state-owned universities and polytechnics had already paid eight months' arrears of the relevant allowances following the Federal Government's intervention, leaving workers in Kaduna's institutions demanding similar treatment.

The dispute affects more than 5,000 workers across four institutions, namely Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, Zaria; College of Arts and Science, Zaria; School of Nursing, Kaduna; and College of Education, Gidan Waya.

Suleiman disclosed that the union had written to the state government on September 9 and September 30, 2026, seeking the implementation of the outstanding agreements, but received no response.

He said the decision to issue the ultimatum followed resolutions reached at joint congresses of the affiliated unions, which mandated the leadership to take further action over the unresolved welfare issues.

The chairman maintained that the unions had complied with the procedures required under labour laws before issuing the warning, stressing that their action was aimed at protecting workers' rights and preventing victimisation.

Despite the threat of a shutdown, JUTIKS said it remained willing to engage the state government in constructive discussions to resolve the disagreement and avert a disruption of activities in the affected institutions.

The ultimatum, however, places pressure on the Kaduna State Government to address the workers' grievances before the deadline expires, as thousands of employees face the prospect of an indefinite industrial action.