At least 203 academic staff at Makerere University Business School (MUBS) have given management up to 15 days to pay their salary arrears worth 57.5billion shillings and withdraw discriminatory payroll or they go to the courts of law.
The staff through their lawyers Kesiime and Company Advocates want the university to also want the withdraw the said discriminatory payroll from the ministry of public service to ensure equity and to confirm the unconfirmed staff.
They argue that the MUBS management has been running two parallel salary payrolls one paid by the government and another paid by the institution.
As a result, this has caused disparities leading to discontentment among staff. For instance, the staff at a rank of a Lecturer at MUBS earns 6.8million on government payroll while others on the same rank receive Shs. 3million which they say is unfair.
Their lawyers argue that this is not only unfair, unlawful and illegal but also discriminatory in nature, as pointed out in a 2014 Auditor-General Report.
Documents indicate that the staff has had several meetings on the same issue with the university management through the Makerere University Business Academic Staff Association (MUBASA), but there hasn’t been any positive outcome.
The staff contends that Professor Waswa Balunywa as an accounting officer as well as a member of the Makerere University Business School Council has failed to technically guide the University Council on this issue.
That the first intended defendant (Professor Waswa Balunywa) is supposed to oversee payments of our clients’ salaries and ensure that every employee gets what is due to him or her, a job he has failed, neglected or intentionally refused to do,” says lawyers on behalf of the staff.
They further argue that Professor Balunywa is a custodian of the university seal and therefore liable for the omissions and acts of MUBS employees.
Brian Muyomba the MUBS academic staff chairperson disclosed that some of the staff who have worked for a period of 10 years and more have experienced salary disparities.
