National

FCT Teachers, Council Workers Protest Unpaid Wages, Benefits

By Benjamin Abioye

Published

4 weeks ago

April 24, 2025

Benjamin Abioye

FCT teachers and council workers have taken to the streets to protest the non-payment of their ₦70,000 minimum wage and other entitlements, urging immediate action from local leaders.

Primary school teachers and local government workers from the six Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) held a peaceful protest in Abuja on Thursday.

The demonstration was organized by the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) and the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) to protest the non-payment of their entitlements and the newly approved minimum wage. The workers marched through the streets, demanding that the ₦70,000 minimum wage be implemented, along with other related benefits.

Although the protest was initially scheduled for Wednesday, it drew widespread participation from education and council workers across all six Area Councils. The unions expressed frustration, especially as workers under the FCT Administration are already benefiting from the new wage structure, while those in the Area Councils have been left behind.

In a statement on Monday in Gwagwalada, the FCT Secretary of NULGE, Sa’ad Abdulmumin, explained that the peaceful protest was aimed at drawing national attention to the continued neglect of their rights. Abdulmumin noted that while the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, had approved ₦4.1 billion for the implementation of the new minimum wage, the six council chairmen had failed to take any action.

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He also highlighted that the council leaders had not enforced several other salary adjustments, including the ₦30,000 wage award, the 25–35% salary increases, a 40% peculiar allowance, and a 35% adjustment under the CONHESS/CONMESS salary structures. Additionally, there has been no remittance of pension deductions to the employees’ Pension Fund Administrators (PFA).

Despite several previous industrial actions, Abdulmumin criticized the Area Council Chairmen for being “adamant, unmoved, and insensitive” to the welfare of the workers and teachers.