NLC Gives Federal Government Four-Week Ultimatum Over Tertiary Institutions Disputes
The Nigeria Labour Congress has set a four-week deadline for the Federal Government to resolve ongoing disputes with all unions representing tertiary institutions, warning that failure to do so will trigger nationwide industrial action.
NLC President Joe Ajaero, speaking at an interactive session with labour correspondents in Abuja, criticized the government’s “no-work-no-pay” policy, calling it a punitive measure against members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) involved in the ongoing strike.
“We are giving the federal government four weeks to conclude all negotiations in this sector. Talks have started with ASUU, but the issues extend beyond them,” Ajaero said. “If no resolution is reached within four weeks, the NEC will convene, and all unions across the country will mobilize to address this comprehensively. The era of threatening unions is over.”
He emphasized the principle of “No Pay, No Work,” asserting that workers should not suffer due to unfulfilled agreements. “Most strike actions in this country arise from the government’s failure to honour commitments,” Ajaero added.
The announcement comes as ASUU continues its nationwide strike, led by National President Professor Chris Piwuna, citing unresolved concerns over staff welfare, university infrastructure, salary arrears, and full implementation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN agreement.
Although the government released N50 billion for earned academic allowances and allocated N150 billion in the 2025 budget for a needs assessment, ASUU rejected these measures as insufficient. The union is demanding full implementation of the 2009 agreement, release of withheld salaries, payment of outstanding arrears and cooperative deductions, as well as sustainable funding for universities.
The NLC reaffirmed its solidarity with ASUU and other tertiary education unions, calling for collective action to defend workers’ rights and ensure the stability and quality of public tertiary education in Nigeria.
