Chanco opens amid uncertainty
First year generic students selected to pursue different programmes at Chancellor College (Chanco) are today expected to proceed with orientation amid uncertainty following a 21-day ultimatum support staff gave management last month to raise their salaries.
In a published statement, orientation of Year One generic students selected in 2017 is expected to take place today while classes for Year One generic students selected in 2016 and 2017, Year One bachelor of laws (honours) students selected in 2017 and all continuing generic students are expected to start on July 17.
after one of their meetings
On the other hand, for Year Three students and Year Four Bachelor of arts in human resource management, classes are set to start on July 21 while mature entry Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Cultural Studies selected in 2016 and 2017 will be the last to start classes on August 7.
Support staff from four University of Malawi (Unima) constituent colleges—Chanco, Kamuzu College of Nursing (KCN), College of Medicine (CoM) and The Polytechnic—are pushing their management to give them a concrete position on their request for a salary harmonisation for staff with equal qualification plus a 40 percent pay raise.
They warned management that if it fails to give them convincing reasons as to why they should not have an increment, they will not hesitate to go on strike.
In an interview last week, Unima Workers Trade Union (UWTU) secretary general James Khando said they will push on to get their salaries adjusted by 40 percent.
Chanco is expected to open with a double cohort of First Year students; those selected in 2016 who attended orientation in March this year and those selected in 2017 and did not attend orientation.
The support staff demands also come at a time when government and the Unima Council have resolved a strike by Chanco lecturers who were demanding a salary harmonisation across all the constituent colleges which paralysed learning at the institution.
