The management of the University Technology (UTECH) and the university’s academic staff union are locked in a meeting at the ministry of labour.

The meeting which started at around 1:00 p.m. today is in an attempt to end a strike by some 500 academic employees at the institution.

Lecturers affiliated with Utech’s academic staff union, withdrew their services on October 25, in protest over unpaid retroactive monies owed to them.

Last Thursday, the ministry of education indicated that it had pledged $250 m from its existing budget towards a $400 m payout for the 2018/19 period.

The remaining 150 million would be funded by Utech.

A series of meetings was expected to be held over the weekend in the hopes of arriving at a suitable agreement regarding this offer.

The academic staff union, yesterday indicated that it would not accept the offer on the table, prompting Utech to reach out to the labour ministry.