BREAKING: FG Releases Workers’ Eight Months Salary

The Federal Government has moved to avert another industrial crisis in the nation’s universities with the release of eight months’ salary arrears owed to members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU).

The development came less than 48 hours after the union issued a 14-day ultimatum to the Federal Government over the implementation of the 2026 FGN/SSANU Agreement, warning that failure to meet its demands would trigger a “total, comprehensive and indefinite strike action.”

SSANU, while confirming the release of the eight months’ arrears, commended the Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, for what it described as a swift intervention to secure the funds and avert a fresh disruption in the university system.

The union had, in a communiqué issued after its 56th National Executive Council (NEC) meeting at the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, demanded the immediate release of funds and full payment of outstanding Consolidated University Teaching and Tertiary Institutions Salary Structure (CONTTA) arrears calculated from January 1, 2026.

It also demanded payment of two months’ salaries withheld during the 2022 industrial action and one-year arrears arising from the 25 per cent and 35 per cent salary increases.

SSANU had warned that failure to meet its demands within 14 days would compel it to embark on a “total, comprehensive and indefinite strike action” without further notice.

However, less than two days after the ultimatum, the Federal Government released the eight months’ arrears, in a move that has eased fears of an imminent disruption of academic activities across Nigerian universities.

Confirming the development, the SSANU President, Comrade Mohammed Haruna Ibrahim, said the release demonstrated that constructive engagement, when matched with prompt action, could protect industrial harmony and workers’ welfare.

Ibrahim particularly commended Alausa for his proactive intervention and for keeping his promise to facilitate the release of the funds.

He disclosed that, before the ultimatum was issued, the minister had contacted him to confirm that the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation were processing the funds for release.

SSANU said the minister’s engagement, followed by the actual release of the arrears, reflected a responsive approach to the implementation of agreements reached with university-based unions.

The union urged the Federal Government to sustain the approach by ensuring the settlement of all remaining entitlements owed to university workers.

Ibrahim also directed members of the union in their various branches to liaise with the managements of their universities to ensure prompt and judicious payment of the released funds, and to report any shortfall to the national leadership.

Despite welcoming the release, SSANU maintained that the Federal Government must still settle the outstanding two months’ salaries withheld during the 2022 strike and the one-year arrears arising from the 25 per cent and 35 per cent salary increases.

The union described the outstanding obligations as legitimate entitlements that should not be subjected to further delay.

The SSANU NEC also called on state governments and governing councils of state-owned universities to ensure full, equitable and properly funded implementation of the agreement.

It warned that selective or delayed implementation could fuel further unrest in the university system.

While welcoming the government’s action, SSANU reaffirmed its commitment to constructive engagement and industrial peace, stressing, however, that it would deploy all lawful and constitutional means to protect the rights, welfare and professional advancement of its members where agreements were not faithfully implemented.

The union said the prompt release of the eight months’ arrears had strengthened confidence that constructive engagement between government and university-based unions could deliver tangible results for workers, students and the wider Nigerian university system.