All the three industrial unions at the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State have suspended their over two months old strike.
The unions are the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, the Non-Academic Staff Union and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics.
Briefing newsmen in Ado-Ekiti at the weekend, representatives of the unions said the decision to suspend the strike was arrived at by members after their meeting with the Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, in Abuja.
The ASUP Chairman, Owoeye Tunji, said at the Abuja meeting, also attended by the Minister of Labour, the management of the institution was directed to pay CONTISS 15 to workers of the school.
Tunji said: “Apart from that, all other issues were trashed.
“The management was asked to withdraw all queries and pay backlog of salaries.
“On the deduction of pensions from casual workers, the issue is being resolved by the management.
“The issue of cooperative deductions is still lingering, but we are going to resolve it amicably.
“We are open minded.
“We are suing for peace and we will allow for give and take.
“The management has been directed to implement Ibrahim Shekarau’s order.”
The SSANIP Chairman, Dr. Ayeni Wole, said academic environment should be run as such.
Wole canvassed the setting up of an Industrial Unit, which would help to tackle issues before they explode, adding: “It is better to do so than setting up reconciliation committee when issues have gone out of hand.”
The representative of NASU, Ajayi Tope, advised the management to be sincere in its handling of matters.
Tope also called for a listening ear to issues relating to staff welfare.
Meanwhile, the management of the institution, in a statement by the Deputy Registrar, Information, Ade Adeyemi-Adejolu, said the management was prepared to abide by the terms of the negotiated peace within the resources available to the institution.
Adeyemi-Adeloju commended all the unions for giving peace a chance and expressed happiness the normalcy had returned to the school.