FCT Primary school teachers begin strike over unpaid arrears

The FCT wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has directed its members across the six area councils to embark on an industrial strike.

The FCT wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has directed its members across the six area councils to embark on an industrial strike from September 11, over non-payment of 25 months arrears.

They are also protesting the non-implementation of a 40 per cent peculiar allowance by the council chairmen.

City & Crime reports that both secondary and primary schools in the FCT resume today for the first term academic session.

The union gave the directive in a communique issued at the end of its emergency State Wing Executive Council (SWEC) meeting held at Teachers’ House in Gwagwalada.

The communique was jointly signed by the NUT state chairman, Comrade Stephen Knabayi, and secretary, Margaret F. Jethro.

The communique added that the council chairmen had also failed to pay other outstanding allowances, which they said included non-implementation of promotion arrears, non-upgrading of concerned teachers, non-implementation of annual increments, non-implementation of promotion letters released for teachers, among others.

“And having explored and exhausted all available avenues of getting these outstanding demands of the concerned teachers met without the desired result including non-commitment of the councils to the welfare of primary school teachers, the SWEC in-session resolved to direct all primary school teachers to embark on an infinite strike action from Monday; September 11, 2023,” the communique read in part.

The union vowed not to call off the strike until its demands are met while calling on parents across the FCT to remain guided by keeping their wards and children safe at home.

The chairman of Kwali Area Council, Danladi Chiya, who is also the FCT ALGON chairman, did not answer calls or respond to a text message sent to him on the strike.