The recent strike by teachers and other education workers in the FCT exposed an uncomfortable truth: those who educate society are increasingly being forced to live in indignity. The strike was called over promotion disputes, career stagnation, and worsening conditions of service. The FCT-NLC suspended the strike after negotiations with the FCTA produced promises on promotions, examinations, and career progression. The NLC promised that failure to implement the resolutions would trigger an automatic resumption of the strike.
https://www.thecable.ng/nlc-suspends-strike-in-fct-directs-teachers-to-resume-classes
The real lesson of this struggle is that education workers hold far more power than they sometimes realize. The strike created pressure because schools could not function without teachers. Parents were worried. Authorities were compelled to negotiate. That pressure would have been improved if other trade unions had managed to mobilise their members. Concrete and measurable gains could have been more clearly secured.
The experience of the wider labour movement also shows that struggle can win concessions. Following the recent conciliation meetings between the Federal Government and the NLC, agreements were reached to commence meetings of a Minimum Wage Negotiation Committee and to implement a temporary ₦70,000 monthly transport intervention for workers, alongside other welfare measures. However, as with every agreement won through struggle, their significance will depend not on announcements but on implementation and sustained pressure from organised labour. In addition, we need to ensure that all past agreements are actually implemented. This includes allowances for health workers and pensioners. Failure to implement past agreements was the key reason for the recent strikes in state universities and of health workers in Katsina State.
The threat of industrial action by organised labour compelled the federal government to approve a ₦70,000 monthly payment for workers for an initial six-month period. While this measure falls far short of resolving the cost-of-living crisis, and its implementation must be closely monitored. It demonstrates that agitation, mobilisation, and the threat of collective action can force governments to make concessions they would otherwise resist. If inflation and hardship continue, it will be difficult for such support measures to be withdrawn without further resistance. At the same time, workers should recognise that securing implementation and winning more lasting gains will require continued organisation, pressure, and readiness to take further strike action.
Governments repeatedly claim there is no money for wages, schools, or public services. Yet revenues continue to rise, political officeholders continue to enjoy enormous privileges, and billions are spent on projects that do little to improve the lives of workers.
The lesson is that strikes are effective, especially when they are broadened and backed by solidarity from the wider labour movement. Victory comes when workers refuse to retreat before their demands are actually secured and implemented.
The next phase of the struggle should not simply be about defending past agreements. It should be about demanding a new minimum wage, a cost-of-living allowance, and adequate investment in public education.
An injury to education workers is an injury to all workers. A living wage now!
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https://socialistlabour.com.ng/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/SL-bulletin-November_2026-1.pdf