Nigeria’s two major non-academic university unions have called a one-day nationwide protest on Thursday over what they describe as the federal government’s failure to meet long-standing labour demands.
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU), acting under their Joint Action Committee (JAC), said all university branches have been directed to hold emergency meetings on Wednesday to mobilize members for protest marches, campus demonstrations, and press briefings.
The planned action follows a JAC meeting on October 6, during which the unions reviewed the government’s response to previous ultimatums and concluded that “little progress” had been made on key issues.
Among the grievances are what the unions called the “unjust disbursement” of a ₦50 billion earned allowances fund, delays in renegotiating a 2009 labour agreement, unpaid two months’ salaries, arrears of 25% and 35% salary increments, and non-remittance of third-party deductions for May and June 2022.
In a circular dated October 6 and signed by NASU General Secretary Prince Peters Adeyemi and SSANU National President Mohammed Ibrahim, JAC said participation in the protest was “crucial to the success” of their struggle.
The unions said they had given the government multiple ultimatums — a seven-day notice issued on September 15 and a subsequent 14-day extension that expired on October 6 — but their demands remained unresolved despite two meetings of a Joint Consultative Committee set up by the education ministry.
“In light of this development, the National JAC hereby directs branch leadership in all universities and inter-university centres to convene a joint congress on Wednesday to prepare for a massive and effective one-day protest on Thursday, October 9, 2025,” the circular said.
Both NASU and SSANU said members in federal and state universities are expected to fully comply with the directive as they push for action on the pending wage and welfare issues.