Staff of the Abuja station of THISDAY newspaper have given the company an ultimatum to pay their outstanding salaries or face an industrial action.
The staff of the station, known in-house in THISDAY as the “Nation’s Capital”, served the notice of industrial dispute in a memo to the company’s Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Nduka Obaigbena.
They gave an ultimatum of June 10, 2016 for the payment of the outstanding salaries of between seven months and 12 months.
While junior staff are being owed seven months, the senior staff are waiting to be paid for 12 months.
In the memo by the Editorial Staff of the Abuja station, they said a warning strike of one week between June 12 and 19 will precede a total strike action if the management fails to pay them.
The memo reads in full:
From: Editorial Staff, Abuja Office
Through: Editor, Nation’s Capital
To: The Chairman/Editor-in-Chief, THISDAY Newspapers
Subject: Notice of Warning Strike
Date: June 7, 2016
Dear Chairman,
Having borne the brunt of Management’s non-payment of our salaries —- running into several months, we, the undersigned Editorial Staff of THISDAY Abuja, have come to the painful decision to declare a warning strike.
Should the management fails to pay us by Friday, June 10, 2016, we will have no option than to embark on a one-week warning strike from Sunday June 12, 2016 until June 19, 2016.
Please, note that an indefinite strike will ensue at the expiration of the warning strike.
By this letter, we are putting the management on notice that effective Sunday June 12, 2016, we will cease to send stories to all THISDAY titles until our salary arrears are defrayed. In this case, we will supply stories to all the titles from now until Saturday June 11, 2016.
For several years, we have sacrificed everything- emotionally, physically and materially to ensure the continued survival of THISDAY but regrettably, the organisation has demonstrated an abysmal disregard for these gestures.
We need not state the obvious that virtually all of us here can no longer meet our obligations both to our families and other responsibilities.
Thanking you for your urgent response.
Signed:
1. Tobi Soniyi
2. Olawale Ajimotokan
3. Patrick Ugeh
4. Senator Iroegbu
5. James Emejo
6. Omololu Ogunmade
7. Paul Obi
8. Ndubusi Francis
9. Dele Ogbodo
10. Damilola Oyedele
11. Chineme Okafor
12. Godwin Omoigui
13. Onyebuchi Ezigbo
Cc: MD, DMD, GED (Finance), GED (Admin), GED (Abuja), Editor/GED, Editor (Sunday), Editor (Saturday), Editor, Nation’s Capital and Deputy Editors.
#TODAY #THEOSASUSHOW
