Primary school teachers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), under the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), have announced an indefinite strike resumption.
This decision follows the receipt of February 2025 salaries without implementing the promised N70,000 minimum wage, causing disappointment among affected teachers.
Teachers Protest Non-Implementation of New Minimum Wage
The strike was confirmed in a communique issued after an emergency State Wing Standing Committee (SWSC) meeting held in Gwagwalada.
The meeting addressed discrepancies in salary payments, particularly the exclusion of the national minimum wage from the latest disbursement.
“The Union finds worrisome the constant and flagrant disregard for agreements reached with the Area Council Chairmen in FCT,” it stated.
One of the critical agreements was implementing the minimum wage for primary school teachers by February 2025, suspending the last strike.
Teachers Decry Continued Financial Hardship
Expressing disappointment over the payment process, the union called the salary disbursement unfair and insensitive to teachers’ ongoing struggles.
The SWSC criticized the financial burden on teachers, questioning, “Why continuously impoverish the impoverished? Why impose hardship and suffering on teachers and their families? Enough is enough!”
Union’s Key Demands
The communique outlined the teachers’ demands, which include:
- Immediate minimum wage implementation in February salaries, paying the differential between old and new wages without delay.
- Payment of March salaries according to the new minimum wage framework agreed upon by all stakeholders earlier this year.
- Disbursement of six months’ worth of minimum wage arrears, fulfilling commitments made in previous negotiations with government officials.
- Implementation of various allowances, including a 40 percent peculiar allowance and other salary increases promised during past discussions.
Union members were urged to remain resolute while parents were advised to keep children at home until further notice.
FCT NUT Chairman Expresses Frustration
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, FCT NUT Chairman, Comrade Abdullahi Mohammed Shafas, expressed deep frustration with authorities.
“We suspended our strike on February 21, 2025, under the assurance that the new minimum wage would be implemented promptly,” he stated.
He described processing February salaries without incorporating the wage increase as “disturbing, disheartening, and lacking empathy for struggling teachers.”
