Plateau Tertiary Institutions Union Issues Strike Threat Over Unmet Demands
If the state government does not comply with their requests for a pay increase and other concerns, the Joint Union of Plateau State-owned Tertiary Institutions (JUPTI) has vowed to go on an indefinite strike by Monday. After the administration was given a 48-hour ultimatum in a letter to the Head of Service on Thursday, negotiations between the government and the union came to a standstill on Friday.
The parties met on Friday in an attempt to rescue the situation, but it “ended in deadlock.” Speaking to reporters on Saturday, JUPTI Chairman Comrade Yohanna Igyem pledged to start the strike, claiming that they have been patient with the government on their required demands that it has not fulfilled.
The disputes have existed since 2024 and have not been successfully resolved. The non-domestication of the Polytechnic Act, 2029, the non-release of employment letters at College of Agriculture Garkawa and College of Arts Sciences and Technology (CAST) Kurgwi, and the non-implementation of 25% and 35% salary increases for tertiary institution staff are some of the main problems.
On January 9, 2026, we sent the Head of Service a 14-day ultimatum, and the government called the union to a meeting that had no results.
“The government invited the union to a meeting and begged for an extension of time to enable it to conclude negotiations with the Union after the union once again decided to issue a seven-day ultimatum to the government dated March 6, 2026.”
After a month, the government called the union to a meeting that was originally set for Thursday, April 16, 2026. The meeting was later rescheduled for April 21, 2026, but it was abruptly postponed indefinitely without a new date.
“At its emergency meeting on Thursday, April 23, 2026, JUPTI issued a 48-hour ultimatum with effect from Friday, April 24, 2026 to Monday, April 27, 2026 midnight to address all the outstanding demands of the Union. Failure to do so will leave the Union with no other option but to proceed on an indefinite strike without further notice,” he stated.
