The Academic Staff Union of Universities at University of Lagos has suspended its strike just hours after the industrial action began on Wednesday.
The decision followed a meeting between the lecturers and the university administration led by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development Services), Foluso Lesi, earlier in the day, as well as a resolution reached during the union’s congress later in the afternoon.
The UNILAG branch of ASUU had on Tuesday directed its members to withdraw their services effective Wednesday in protest against what it described as “amputated” salaries for January and February 2026.
The union accused the university management of failing to fully pay the Earned Academic Allowance and Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance for Research across the Akoka and Idi-Araba campuses in January, as well as the Consolidated Academic Teaching Allowance and professorial allowance for February.
Speaking on the development, the Chairman of ASUU, UNILAG chapter, Idou Keinde, said the strike was suspended after the university management promised to address the issues within 48 hours.
According to him, discussions with the administration focused on harmonising positions on the Earned Academic Allowances and the professorial allowance for excess workload.
“We met with the administration, they made some promises and said they would act in the next 48 hours. ASUU is a union of intellectuals and principles. We are always procedural in whatever we want to do,” Keinde said.
He added that the union was asked to provide documentary evidence from the salary structure contained in the Federal Government–ASUU 2025 agreement to support its claims.
Keinde explained that the union resolved to suspend the strike during a congress held around 2 p.m. on Wednesday to avoid disrupting ongoing examinations.
“The action is suspended. We have vacated the resolution. The 48 hours have already started counting,” he said.
He stressed that the union would not allow students sitting for examinations to suffer as a result of the dispute.
“We cannot have them as pawns on a chessboard because our children are also here,” he added.
Earlier, the university management, through its Head of Communication Unit, Adejoke Alaga-Ibraheem, criticised the union for declaring an industrial action without following due process.
However, the management stated that it would continue engaging the union to resolve the issues, particularly those relating to the unpaid Consolidated Academic Teaching Allowances.
Meanwhile, examinations scheduled for Wednesday proceeded in several departments, while a few were postponed until Thursday.
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