The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Taraba State University (TSU) chapter, on Monday declared a total and indefinite strike over the alleged failure of the Taraba State Government to implement its demands on staff remuneration and the payment of salary arrears.
The union announced that the industrial action would commence immediately on October 12, 2026, following what it described as continued delays by the state government in fulfilling its commitments to university workers.
The ASUU-TSU chairman, Dr Joshua Garba Mbave, disclosed this in a statement, identifying the implementation of the 2025 Federal Government-ASUU remuneration agreement and the payment of outstanding salary arrears as the union’s major demands.
According to the statement, the union is demanding the immediate implementation of the remuneration agreement at Taraba State University, alongside the payment of all accrued salary arrears from January 2026 to date.
The union also called for the full implementation of the agreed remuneration structure, insisting that the government must honour its commitments to university workers.
“The union had exercised considerable patience and demonstrated its commitment to dialogue since February 2026, when it began engaging the Taraba State Government over the outstanding issues,” Mbave said.
He explained that the engagements led to the establishment of a verification committee to assess the existing salary structure and the level of implementation of the remuneration agreement across the North-East region.
The committee reportedly concluded its assignment and presented its report on September 24, 2026.
“The union had earlier suspended its planned industrial action following an appeal by the government for additional time through the Office of the Head of Civil Service, in the interest of maintaining industrial harmony,” the chairman added
However, he said continued delays in implementing the agreement, despite the completion of the verification exercise and other processes, had left the union with no option but to embark on the strike.
ASUU-TSU stressed that the industrial action should not be interpreted as a rejection of dialogue, adding that it remained open to meaningful and constructive engagement with the government and other relevant stakeholders.
The union, however, maintained that any further engagement must be sincere, timely and geared towards achieving a definite resolution of the dispute.
It called on the Taraba State Government to respect the processes already concluded and take immediate steps to implement the agreed remuneration framework and settle all outstanding salary arrears.
The statement further urged members of the public to understand that the union’s demands were aimed at ensuring fairness, protecting the dignity of university workers and upholding agreements reached in good faith.