We’re ready for ‘noise’ making NLC – UCC senior staff

Administrative work in some public universities has been disrupted as senior staff begin a nationwide strike.

They are demanding better conditions of service and are also opposing moves to migrate them onto the payroll of the Controller and Accountant General.

Chairman of the UCC branch of the association Charles Amos Odum told Starr News “the strike has started, we are going round to make sure no staff stays at office. Sometimes some of them will not hear the news and other things so we have to go round."

On the impact of the strike action he noted “the impact is huge. I work at the library and all the senior staff are home. If you go to salary section there is no junior staff there, because now all the senior staff are going home.”

“And we are at the hospital making sure that our nurses leave, close to 70% of the staff at the hospital are senior staff."

Meanwhile, the NLC says it has initiated proceses to secure a court order to stop the strike.

Touching on that, Mr Odum stated “we have not received anything from Labor Commission. They only sit at their office and make noise. When we wrote them letter did they acknowledge that letter? We are prepared to engage them if they are ready. If they call us today we will go.”

“You call us then we all sit down then when we finish the negotiation then we call off the strike. But you can’t just make an announcement that the strike should be off. Because we met and we agreed on it. Even if you bring letter we have to agree on it before we call off the strike,” he added.