By Isatou Sarr
A staff association has given the government 14 business days to address its demands, warning that its members will embark on an indefinite strike action if their issues remain unresolved.
The Staff Welfare Association of the University of Applied Science, Engineering and Technology (USET-SWA) made the ultimatum over demands it said must be met.
The association issued the ultimatum in a position paper titled “The Imminent Crisis of Our Technical University and Institutional Realities”, presented on Friday, Oct. 16, at the University’s Kanifing Campus.
Speaking on behalf of the association, Secretary-General Demba Bah said USET was facing a serious financial and operational crisis arising from stagnant government funding following its transformation from the former Gambia Technical Training Institute (GTTI).
Bah said that while the institution previously operated an outreach centre in Mansakonko, it now had four additional centres in: Ndemban, Kanilai, Julangel and Wassu, without a corresponding increase in government subvention.
“The operational reality has become entirely unsustainable,” the position paper stated, adding that spreading the existing subvention across the additional centres had severely weakened the institution’s operational capacity.
The association also expressed concern that expensive production machinery intended to generate internal revenue was lying idle and deteriorating because of a shortage of trained personnel to operate and maintain the equipment.
It said the lack of technical staffing had undermined the university’s ability to make productive use of the machinery.
On staff welfare, the association said employees had endured years of delayed salary payments, with some salaries reportedly arriving as late as the 17th day of the following month.
It also alleged that statutory deductions, including social security contributions and payments to the Gambia Teachers Union Co-operative Credit Union (GTUCCU), had not been remitted.
The association described the alleged failure to remit the deductions as unlawful and said it threatened employees’ financial security.
Among its demands to the government and the responsible ministry, the association called for an emergency financial bailout within one week to settle outstanding staff benefits and a permanent guarantee of timely salary payments.
It also urged the Governing Council and university management to introduce a full tuition waiver for staff, provide training for technical personnel, suspend new recruitment, reinstate fuel allowances and conduct a comprehensive financial audit of all projects and contracts undertaken over the past five years.
The association further recommended that parliament enact a “Funding Before Expansion” law to prevent public universities from opening new campuses without dedicated funding.
Bah said staff would resort to a total and indefinite strike across all university centres if their demands were not met within 14 business days.
“Our patience is entirely exhausted. We will not work for free and we will not allow our institution’s name to be used to mask undisputed realities,” the association declared.
The proposed industrial action could affect operations across the university’s campuses and centres if the dispute is not resolved before the deadline.