Nust gives in to lecturers’ demands

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NATIONAL University of Science and Technology (Nust) lecturers last Thursday agreed to resume teaching part-time and masters’ students after a long drawn out boycott over outstanding allowances.

NATIONAL University of Science and Technology (Nust) lecturers last Thursday agreed to resume teaching part-time and masters’ students after a long drawn out boycott over outstanding allowances.

RICHARD MUPONDE SENIOR REPORTER

The academic staff had stopped teaching evening classes and masters’ students, but continued teaching mainstream classes due to a dispute over unpaid allowances.

However, the university’s administration and Nust Educators Association (Nusteda) signed a memorandum of agreement to stop the strike after the university committed itself to pay the outstanding allowances.

The agreement was that Nust “will pay together with March 2014 salaries, all part time claims amounting to $180 000 which by December 31 2013 had been submitted to the bursar’s department.”

“Nust will pay in full by April 30 2014 the outstanding balance of part time claims for the first semester of the 2013 to 2014 academic rear,” the signed statement by Nust vice-chancellor Lindela Ndlovu, registrar Fidelis Mhlanga and Nusteda president Alois Muzvuwe and secretary-general Blessing Jona, read.

“Nust will pay off in full whatever is the outstanding balance of the arbitration award by 30 April 2014.

“Nusteda will end the current industrial action by its members and return to work with effect from 27 March 2014.”

The agreement came after both parties had appeared before a labour officer on the same day where Nust had applied for a show cause order to have the strike declared illegal.

The labour officer wanted to ascertain the positions of the two parties before referring the matter to Labour and Social Welfare minister Nicholas Goche.

Goche had been expected to decide whether or not to issue a show cause order. Nust lawyer Jonathan Moyo of Calderwood Bryce, Hendrie and Partners argued that the strike was illegal as the lecturers did not give 14-day notice of the intention to embark of a collective job action.

However, his arguments were rebutted by Kossam Ncube of Kossam Ncube and Associates, representing Nusteda who argued that Nust had breached its contract with the lecturers.

Ncube said Nust had advised lecturers that it would pay and that amounted to repudiation of their employment contracts.