NLC, NUT Reject Wike’s No-Work, No-Pay Directive

The Nigeria Labour Congress, Federal Capital Territory Council, and the Nigeria Union of Teachers, FCT Wing, have rejected the directive by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike to enforce a no-work, no-pay policy against workers participating in the ongoing strike.

The unions described the directive as unconstitutional, illegal and unenforceable in separate circulars issued to their members on Sunday.

The NLC FCT Council Chairman, Mr Knabayi Adalo, and the NUT FCT Wing Secretary, Mrs Margaret Jethro, urged workers and teachers to remain committed to the strike despite threats of salary deductions and attendance monitoring.

Wike had directed chairmen of the six area councils to implement the no-work, no-pay policy against participating workers. He also instructed the FCT Head of Civil Service, school principals and headteachers to maintain daily attendance registers to identify absent employees.

The directive followed an indefinite strike declared by the NLC on October 7 over unresolved disputes between the FCT Administration and the NUT.

Adalo maintained that workers had a legal right to embark on industrial action after fulfilling the required procedures. He cited Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution, the Trade Unions Act and relevant International Labour Organisation conventions in support of the union’s position.

He argued that Section 43 of the Trade Disputes Act, which provides for the no-work, no-pay principle, applied to illegal strikes and should not be used to penalise workers participating in legitimate industrial action.

According to him, the dispute arose partly from the imposition of a vacancy requirement for teachers’ promotions and the demotion of directors whom the union said were entitled to protection under the Harmonised Retirement Age for Teachers Act, 2022.

Adalo also referred to previous judgments of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, which he said supported workers’ entitlement to salaries in certain circumstances involving legitimate strikes.

He urged school administrators not to compel teachers to sign attendance registers during the industrial action, arguing that such measures could be used to facilitate punitive action against union members.

The labour leader warned that principals and headteachers who forced teachers to sign the registers or submitted names for disciplinary measures could face union action, including picketing.

He called on the FCT Administration to remove the disputed vacancy clause, conduct the 2025 promotion exercise and reinstate the affected directors.

Jethro also urged teachers not to be intimidated by the salary threat, insisting that their demands concerned welfare and employment conditions rather than political interests.

She called on members to remain peaceful and law-abiding while the strike continued.

The dispute highlights continuing tensions between the FCT Administration and organised labour over teachers’ career progression, promotion procedures and the treatment of senior education officials. The unions maintain that resolving the outstanding issues, rather than threatening salary deductions, is necessary to end the industrial action.