The organised labour has urged all public servants in Plateau to strictly comply with the five-day sit-at-home directive to affiliate unions to ensure the desired result.

Addressing journalists in Jos on Monday, Titus Malau, chairman of the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC), Plateau chapter, said there was no going back on the warning strike.

Earlier, the Plateau government urged the organised labour to shelve its proposed warning strike scheduled to commence on Monday.

But, Mr Malau said the warning strike is total and comprehensive and urged all workers to remain at home.

He said the warning strike, which started at midnight on Sunday, became imperative following the government’s failure to fulfil workers’ demands.

He said that JNPSNC was particularly concerned that the government reneged in fulfilling the agreement reached on November 11, with the intervention of the Secretary to the State Government.

The chairman listed the issues that necessitated the strike, including irregularities in the computation of salaries and payment of same to workers.

“To that effect, JNPSNC demands immediate approval and release of the salary structure to guide salary computation.

“It also demands immediate settlement of outstanding salaries to date.

“It equally frowned at the government’s inability to release workers’ promotion and annual increments with arrears in full.

“It condemns in totality the payment of three months of arrears only of late promotions and demands for immediate release and implementation of workers promotion with full arrears,” he said.

Mr Malau said that congress decried the non-release of third-party deductions such as union dues, cooperative deductions, Federal Mortgage Bank deductions and salaries paid.

He appealed to the state government to immediately settle all third-party deductions.

The chairman of the Plateau chapter of the Nigerian Labour Congress, Eugene Manji, also said workers were owed five months’ salaries.

Mr Manji said that organised labour gave the government sufficient time to settle the outstanding issues.

“We are left with no option than where we are today, and at the expiration of this five days strike, we are going to strategise and decide the way forward.”

Also, the vice chairman, Trade Union Congress (TUC), Chundung Alamba, said labour was not fighting the government but canvassing to save workers from starvation.

(NAN)