NLC Warns FG: Stop Using ‘No Work, No Pay’ to Threaten ASUU, Honour Agreements

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has strongly criticized the Federal Government’s threat to apply the “No Work, No Pay” policy against striking university lecturers, insisting that such intimidation tactics will not resolve the deep-rooted crisis in Nigeria’s public universities.

Reacting to the two-week warning strike declared by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, said the action was a justifiable reaction to the government’s repeated breaches of agreements it voluntarily signed with the union.

In a statement, Ajaero expressed concern over the “persistent crisis in Nigeria’s public education system,” citing chronic underfunding and the government’s refusal to implement existing agreements as the core of the problem.

“The commencement of the two-week warning strike by ASUU is a direct consequence of the Federal Government’s failure to honour these collectively bargained agreements,” the statement read. “The strike is not an act of defiance but a legitimate response to years of neglect and unfulfilled promises.”

The NLC condemned the government’s resort to threats instead of genuine dialogue, describing the “No Work, No Pay” stance as both unproductive and misleading.

“The breach of contract lies with the state, not the scholars. Lecturers are willing to work, but the government’s consistent failure to meet its obligations has made it impossible for them to do so with dignity. The principle remains clear: No Pay, No Work,” Ajaero stated.

He stressed that the dispute goes beyond industrial relations, calling it a symbol of wider social injustice and deliberate neglect of public education while children of the elite study in private schools at home and abroad.

“The children of workers and the poor are left with an underfunded, demoralized system, perpetuating inequality and limiting social mobility,” he said. “Quality education must not be a privilege for a few but a right for all.”

Declaring total solidarity with ASUU and other unions in the tertiary education sector, the NLC urged the Federal Government to set aside its threats and address the substantive issues in the negotiated agreements.

“If, after the two-week warning strike, the government remains unresponsive, the NLC will not stand idly by,” Ajaero warned. “We will convene an emergency meeting with our affiliates to map out a comprehensive strategy for engagement.”

The NLC concluded with a firm message to the government:

“The struggle of ASUU is the struggle of the Nigerian working class. The fight for public education is a fight for Nigeria’s future. The choice is clear: honour the agreements and salvage public education, or face the united resolve of the Nigerian workforce.”

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