Workers under the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN), Akwa Ibom State branch, have issued a one-month ultimatum to the State Government to fulfil outstanding agreements or face industrial action.

In a strike notice addressed to Governor Umo Eno, the union warned that it would embark on a strike if the government fails to release all outstanding entitlements due to judiciary staff within the stipulated period.

The demands include the payment of the 2025 robe allowance for lawyers, 2024 and 2025 promotion arrears, salary arrears for court assessors, and the correction of discrepancies in the CONAKEJUSS progressive salary table.

The notice was contained in a communiqué issued after the union’s congress held on January 30, 2026, at the Justice Idiong Multipurpose Hall, Judiciary Headquarters, Uyo. The congress, attended by members of the Executive Committee and representatives from the state’s 16 judicial divisions, was presided over by the Branch Chairman, Comrade Katele Ajah.

While deliberating on issues affecting members, the congress commended Governor Eno for approving a 15 per cent increase in peculiar allowance for judiciary staff and for the ₦1.5 million refreshment package announced during the 2025 Workers’ Day celebration.

However, the union expressed dissatisfaction over the non-implementation of the 15 per cent arrears effective from April 2025.

JUSUN also acknowledged the governor’s allocation of 1,000 employment slots to the judiciary but described the figure as inadequate to address manpower shortages resulting from retirements, deaths, and other exits since 2013. The union appealed for the employment slots to be increased to at least 2,500 and urged that temporary staff be prioritised during recruitment.

In the communiqué, the union also called for the provision of an official vehicle for the Executive Secretary of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) as well as pool vehicles for both the judiciary and the JSC.

Citing the Third Schedule, Part II, Paragraph 2(1)(a) and (b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the union urged the governor to reconsider the imposition of the unified state employment portal on the judiciary, arguing that such a policy undermines the constitutional functions of the Judicial Service Commission.

The union resolved that if the government fails to respond positively within one month of receiving the communiqué, it will proceed with a three-day warning strike to press home its demands.