The Government of Sierra Leone has engaged Chancellors, Vice Chancellors, Principals, Registrars and other senior officials of public tertiary institutions over the industrial action announced by the Union of Academic Staff Associations (UASA) of public tertiary institutions.
The engagement, convened on 17 September 2026 by the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education, brought together representatives of the Wages and Compensation Commission (WCC), the Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social Security, the Sierra Leone Labour Congress and leadership of public tertiary institutions.
The meeting focused on ongoing negotiations with UASA, the union’s salary and conditions-of-service demands, and the implications of the strike notice on the functioning of tertiary institutions.
Deputy Minister of Higher and Technical Education, Sarjoh Aziz Kamara, said the meeting was aimed at briefing university leaders on Government’s engagement with UASA and discussing measures to ensure the continued operation of tertiary institutions.
Director of Compensation at the Wages and Compensation Commission, Jeremiah B. Ademokula, said the Commission had conducted a technical assessment of UASA’s salary demands, including their potential implications for the national budget.
He disclosed that the Government currently accounts for about 83 percent of salary payments to university staff, while universities cover the remaining 17 percent.
According to Jeremiah B. Ademokula, the Commission submitted its assessment to the Ministry of Finance on 11 September 2026 for consideration. He said the next stage would involve a joint engagement between the Ministry of Finance, WCC, the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education and UASA to determine the way forward.
Deputy Minister of Employment, Labour and Social Security, Lansana M. Dumbuya, urged the parties to continue using social dialogue and established negotiation mechanisms to resolve the outstanding issues.
He explained that salary negotiations are now handled by the Wages and Compensation Commission, while the Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social Security is responsible for labour administration, oversight and mediation within the established framework.
Lansana M. Dumbuya stressed the importance of the tertiary education sector and encouraged academic staff to utilize the ongoing negotiation process rather than resorting to industrial action while discussions remain underway.
Secretary of the Sierra Leone Labour Congress, Marx Conteh, acknowledged the growing demand for improved wages among workers and said continued negotiations could help address workers’ concerns and prevent further disruption within the sector.
Minister of Technical and Higher Education, Dr. Ramatulai Wurie, said her Ministry had consistently engaged UASA and followed the relevant institutional and legal processes in addressing the Union’s demands.
She explained that UASA submitted proposals on salary increases and conditions of service in June 2026. While the conditions-of-service proposals were referred to the respective university councils for consideration and harmonization, the salary component was referred to the Wages and Compensation Commission, which has the mandate to negotiate salaries.
Dr. Ramatulai Wurie said UASA initially proposed a 500 percent salary increase before reducing the demand to 100 percent. She said the Government is assessing the revised proposal against available fiscal resources and relevant benchmarks.
The Minister also clarified that although university lecturers are employed by their respective university councils, the Government has been responsible for paying the majority of their salaries since 2018/2019.
She said Government held further engagements with the Wages and Compensation Commission after receiving the strike notice, but negotiations were still ongoing when UASA announced the industrial action.
Dr. Ramatulai Wurie expressed concern over the decision to proceed with industrial action while negotiations are continuing, citing Section 64(3) of the Industrial Relations and Trade Union Act 2023 and stressing the importance of adhering to due process.
She reaffirmed Government’s commitment to transparency, dialogue and the rule of law in resolving the outstanding issues and addressing concerns raised by academic staff.
The post Government Urges UASA to Continue Dialogue as Strike Notice Looms first appeared on The Calabash Newspaper.
