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Strike: ASUU Reacts to FG’s No-Work-No-Pay Directive

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has reacted to the Federal Government’s recent directive of ‘no work, no pay’ policy.
ASUU urged the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, to focus on resolving the ongoing dispute with the union instead of issuing threats.
This comes barely 24 hours after university lecturers embarked on a two-week warning strike to press home their demands.
ASUU President, Chris Piwuna, while speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, dismissed the Federal Government’s ‘No Work, No Pay’ directive, insisting that the union will not be intimidated by threats.
Piwuna said the union remained united and would not succumb to the government’s attempt to divide the academic community.
According to him, all academic bodies, such as the National Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA) and the Congress of Nigerian University Academics (CONUA), were standing together in support of the strike action.
He said, “We don’t respond to threats, and nobody can threaten us.
 
“He is threatening us, writing to NAMDA and CONUA, telling them they can get their salaries. He wants to divide us, but we are united in this matter.
 
“CONUA is with us, NAMDA is with us, SSANU is with us, NASU is with us. The polytechnics and colleges of education are also with us.”
 
Piwuna also hinted that the union remained open to dialogue and was ready to engage with the Federal Government.
He added, “He has got something coming. He had better sit down and solve this problem or he will fail in trying to divide us.
 
“Today, I received a call from the Minister of State for Labour. She said she has been directed to intervene and get this matter resolved. ASUU is willing. We are ready and available to discuss this matter once and for all.”
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ASUU Strike Grounds Academic Activities in Nigerian Universities

Following the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU’s ongoing two-week warning strike, academic activities have been grounded in most public universities across the country according to a check on Monday.
This is as members of ASUU fully observed the strike action, a report by DailyPost has revealed.
Recall that we had reported that ASUU on Monday commenced a two-week warning strike following the expiration of its ultimatum to the government
The renewed face-off between the ASUU and the FG came after negotiations aimed at preventing another prolonged shutdown of public universities failed.
On October 10, the Minister of State for Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, said the government was in the final phase of talks with aggrieved lecturers and other university-based unions to resolve outstanding issues related to welfare, funding, and the implementation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement.
Alausa noted that the Tinubu administration had made notable progress, including the release of N50 billion for Earned Academic Allowances and the inclusion of N150 billion in the 2025 budget for needs assessment, to be disbursed in three tranches.

But ASUU disclosed after the meeting that the government presented to them a document that was “totally alien to issues discussed at plenary, particularly the item on conditions of service”.
According to ASUU President, Christopher Piwuna the union’s demands include; Conclusion of the renegotiated 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement based on Nimi Briggs Committee’s Draft Agreement of 2021; the release of withheld three-and-half months’ salaries on account of the 2022 strike action; Release of unpaid salaries of staff on sabbatical, part-time, and adjunct appointments due to the application of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS.
Others include release of outstanding third-party deductions such as pension deductions, check-off dues, and cooperative contributions; Funding for revitalization of public universities and Payment of arrears of 25% – 35% salary award for 12 months.
The union in a statement on Sunday warned its members across the country that any “violation of this strike action will be met with severe sanctions”.
There was a total compliance across all federal and state universities in Nigeria.
When our correspondent visited the Moses Adasu University Makurdi, Benue State at about 12pm on Monday, all classes were empty while only a few students were seen around the campus.
Ongoing semester examinations at several universities across the country were disrupted following the industrial dispute.
Some of the affected institutions include, Nasarawa State University, Keffi; the Federal University Dutse, Jigawa State, the University of Benin, Edo State, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN, and the University of Jos, Plateau State.
According to findings by DAILY POST, Bayero University Kano and the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, ATBU in Bauchi State had just concluded their semester examinations, narrowly escaping the two-week strike period.
At the Nasarawa State University, ASUU officials were seen moving from one examination hall to another, compelling students to vacate the halls.
One of the stranded students at the Moses Adasu University, Joseph Adoyi who spoke with DAILY POST, lamented that the industrial action has disrupted his plans.
“Actually the strike touched me. I was thinking I would be at 300 level in the next three months but in Nigerian universities, students propose, ASUU disposes.

“All in all we are still on ground hoping that the two-week warning strike would end in those two-weeks.

“At first, I thought the strike would be called off before the day break, especially after seeing the latest news about FG placing a No Pay policy.
 
“But this morning, it’s a different story when lecturers told us this morning to start going home. I pray it all ends before that two weeks”, he said.
Similarly, a final year student of the Federal University Dutse, in Jigawa State, Mary Ajegba claimed that the incessant industrial action by the university teachers has grossly affected her learning and graduation.
“If not for the ASUU strike, I should be wearing my khaki by now as a corps member but here we are not knowing when we will graduate. They said it’s just two-week. By experience, I don’t see this matter resolved soon.
 
“This year and next year, 2026 are the best time for them to strike because another election is coming. The only time ASUU embarks on strike is when a new government just comes in.
 
“How I wish there is another way for these people to resolve their differences instead of tampering with people’s destinies”, she lamented.
ASUU President, Prof. Chris Piwuna on Monday said the union is ready to resume talks with the Federal Government, reaffirming the union’s commitment to dialogue as the only path to resolving the lingering industrial dispute.
“Today, I received a call from Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, Chairman of the Federal Government Team, and he’s eager to resume talks with us.
 
“I also received another call from the Minister of State for Labour, stating that she’s been directed to intervene and get this matter resolved.
 
“ASUU is willing. We are ready and available to discuss this matter once and for all,” Piwuna said during an interview on Channels TV.
Meanwhile, the FG had directed Vic-Chancellors of all federal universities to immediately stop the remuneration of the striking lecturers.
In a circular dated October 13, 2025, and signed by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, the FG urged the vice-chancellors to enforce the ‘No Work, No Pay’ policy.
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ASUU Strike: FG Directs Vice-Chancellors to Stop Lecturers’ Salary

The Federal Government has ordered salaries of lecturers to be stopped.
This is as FG directed vice-chancellors of all federal universities in Nigeria to commence enforcement of “no work, no pay” policy against members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.
Recall that university teachers are currently on strike over FG’s inability to meet their outstanding demands.
The directive was contained in a circular dated October 13, 2025, and signed by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa.
“In line with the provisions of the Labour Laws of the Federation, the Federal Government reiterates its position on the enforcement of the ‘No Work, No Pay’ policy in respect of any employee who fails to discharge his or her official duties during the period of strike action,” the circular reads
The circular was copied to the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Permanent Secretary of Education, Pro-Chancellors of all federal universities, the Accountant-General of the Federation, and the Executive Secretary of the NUC.
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No Work, No Pay – FG Threatens ASUU Over Nationwide Strike

The Federal Government has insisted that its ‘no work, no pay policy’ will be implemented against striking Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) members.
This is as the union embarked on a warning strike this Monday.
In a joint statement released on Sunday, Minister of Education Maruf Tunji Alausa and Minister of State for Education Suwaiba Sai’d Ahmed said the government remains committed to resolving ASUU’s concerns through continued dialogue.
 
“The Federal Government has demonstrated sincerity, patience, and goodwill in its discussions with the Union,” the statement said.
According to the ministers, several of ASUU’s key demands — including enhanced teaching allowances and better conditions of service — have already been addressed.
They added that other unresolved matters fall under the authority of university governing councils, which have been reconstituted to handle them.
 
“Despite these efforts, ASUU has chosen to embark on strike action, a decision that fails to reflect fairness to students or the public,” the statement read.
Reaffirming President Bola Tinubu’s commitment under the Renewed Hope Agenda to maintaining academic stability, the ministers cautioned that the “no work, no pay” policy remains a valid labour law and would be applied if universities are shut down.
They urged ASUU to reconsider its stance and return to the dialogue table, emphasizing that “the government remains open to engagement at all levels to avoid unnecessary disruption in the education sector.”
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ASUU Declares Nationwide Strike

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has announced a nationwide warning strike.

ASUU announced the two-week nationwide warning strike after the expiration of its 14-day ultimatum to the Federal Government.

ASUU President, Professor Chris Piwuna, announced the decision during a press briefing in Abuja on Sunday, stating that the industrial action would take effect from midnight, marking the end of the ultimatum.
He explained that the strike aims to compel the government to fulfill its outstanding agreements with the union and tackle the ongoing challenges confronting public universities across Nigeria.
The union had issued the ultimatum on September 28, 2025, as part of renewed efforts to resolve long-standing disputes within the university system.
Piwuna said the action became necessary after repeated engagements with the government produced no meaningful outcome, declaring that, “all branches of ASUU are hereby directed to withdraw their services from midnight, 12:01 am on Monday, 13th October 2025. The warning strike shall be total and comprehensive as agreed at the last NEC meeting.”
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ASUU Declares Two-Week Nationwide Warning Strike To Begin Monday As Ultimatum To Tinubu Govt Expires

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has announced a two-week nationwide warning strike, instructing all its branches across the country to withdraw their services starting from midnight on Monday, October 13, 2025, SaharaReporters has learned.

A copy of a circular issued by the ASUU National Executive Council (NEC), and signed by its president, Prof. Chris Riwuna, obtained by SaharaReporters, confirmed the directive.

The statement read: “Compatriots of the Press, it goes without saying that there is nothing sufficient on ground to stop the implementation of ASUU-NEC’s resolution to embark on a two-week warning strike at the expiry of the 14 days’ notice given on 28th September, 2025.

“Consequently, all branches of ASUU are hereby directed to withdraw their services with effect from midnight (12.01a.m.) on Monday, 13th October, 2025. The warning strike shall be total and comprehensive as agreed at the last NEC meeting.”

The latest action follows the expiration of a 14-day ultimatum issued by the union to the Nigerian Government.

The union demanded the implementation of agreements reached during previous negotiations, including issues surrounding earned academic allowances, revitalization funds for public universities, withheld salaries, and the government’s failure to review lecturers’ welfare packages.

In a circular titled “Strike Bulletin No. 1” issued on October 5, 2025, and signed by the union’s President, Piwuna, ASUU’s National Executive Council (NEC) said it reached the decision after evaluating the results of a referendum conducted across its branches.

The union said the ultimatum followed a referendum across its branches and resolutions reached at an emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on September 29, 2025.

ASUU accused the Bola Tinubu-led administration of failing to implement key agreements, including the renegotiation of the 2009 FGN-ASUU Agreement, revitalization of public universities, payment of earned academic allowances, and other welfare-related demands.

The union lamented that despite notifying the Ministers of Labour and Education, as well as the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), there had been no meaningful response from the government.

ASUU described the negotiation process as “tortuous” and unnecessarily prolonged for over eight years, warning that its planned action is meant to compel the government to sign and implement the renegotiated agreement and tackle the ongoing brain drain (“Japa syndrome”) that continues to strip universities of qualified lecturers.

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ASUU Reacts to Federal Government’s Appeal To Suspend Strike

The Academic Staff Union of Universities has reacted after the Federal Government begged it to shelve its proposed warning strike.
According to ASUU, FG’s intervention is “a little too late.”
ASUU President, Professor Chris Piwuna, made the comment on Thursday during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, accusing the government of failing to treat the union’s demands with urgency.
 
“The problem we have with this government and this Ministry of Education is that they are slow in responding to our demands,” Piwuna said.
He recalled that the union had given the government a three-week deadline after a previous meeting in Sokoto, but said no follow-up communication came from the authorities within that period.
 
“We went for a meeting in Sokoto, and at that time we were about to embark on a strike action,” he explained. “They gave us three weeks, we accepted the three weeks, but we never heard a word from them until the three weeks elapsed, not a word from them, courtesy to even say, ‘Oh gentlemen, we think we are running short, three weeks is around the corner, we are unable to meet with you on so-and-so date.’ Nothing, until we threatened action.”
According to Piwuna, it was only two working days before the proposed strike that the government reached out to appeal for suspension of the planned action.
“Yesterday, they appealed to us not to embark on action. Our 2009 agreement, which is still being renegotiated after eight years, remains undone. We have not concluded on it, and two working days before a strike action, you come to appeal to us. I think the appeal has come a little too late,” he said.
The ASUU President maintained that the union’s members would proceed with their planned warning strike once the current ultimatum expires on Sunday unless the government presents tangible solutions.
 
“Their ultimatum expires on Sunday, and after that, there will be a warning strike unless something substantial comes out from the government,” Piwuna warned. “So, in the next 48 hours, we expect to receive something substantial from the government. Then, we can go back to our members and ask, ‘Do you think this is sufficient for us to hold on?’ and we will do what our members ask us to do.”

ASUU had earlier directed its branches across the country to prepare for a two-week warning strike expected to commence on October 13.

The latest standoff between the union and the Federal Government adds to a long list of disputes over university funding, lecturers’ welfare, and the still-unresolved 2009 ASUU-FGN Agreement.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, said on Wednesday that the government had entered the final stage of talks with ASUU and other university unions to find a lasting solution to the lingering crisis in the country’s tertiary education system.
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FG Reacts As ASUU Begins Mobilizing Members For Nationwide Strike

The federal government has reacted to the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) planned nationwide strike.
The government begged ASUU to shelve its strike, assuring that all outstanding issues will be addressed.
The assurance was given by the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, during a press briefing on Wednesday, noting that President Bola Tinubu has the political will to meet the demands of the union.
He added that President Tinubu has directed that all necessary efforts must be put in place to ensure that university and other public tertiary institution students remain in schools and the school doors remain open for activities.
Alausa submitted that there is no basis for the proposed ASUU strike, as their grievances are already receiving attention.
The Minister disclosed that by Thursday, the Yayale Ahmed-led Federal Government Tertiary Institutions Expanded Negotiating Committee would meet with the leadership of ASUU to present the government’s offer to them.

He revealed that the committee has reached out to ASUU and other unions in tertiary institutions to start giving dates and times when they will meet.
“The directive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to us is that our children must be in school; that we should do everything humanly possible to avert a strike. That’s why what we’ve been working behind the scenes to ensure a holistic resolution of the issues. We’ve not been talking about everything we’re doing.
 
“People at the highest level of government have been working several hours intensely to get a robust but affordable response back to our trade unions. These are issues that predate 10-15 years ago. They’ve not been surmounted, but this President has given us the political will to resolve these issues once and for all.
 
“In the past, things were done in silos. There were three different Negotiating Committees that were set up. One for universities, one for polytechnics and one for the College of Education and those committees worked in silos. That’s not an efficient way to negotiate.
 
”Despite the slight delay that we’ve had in putting the Expanded Committee together, we now have one Negotiating Committee that will talk with all tertiary institutions. That same committee will negotiate with academic staff and non-academic staff unions so that they can have a full grasp of what their needs are.
 
“I have seen all the requests from all these unions at the universities, polytechnics and colleges of education; 80% of those requests are about the same, while the 20% of the requests are based on particular needs of the universities, polytechnics and colleges of education,” Alausa said.
Alausa disclosed that the expanded negotiation committee was inaugurated on Monday and that the members held their inaugural meeting on Tuesday.
He appealed for calm on the part of ASUU, assuring that the government is committed to resolving all issues, stressing that the contending issues have been ongoing for about two decades.
“And as I’ve said repeatedly, we will resolve it in a holistic, comprehensive manner that is mutually respectful to the unions in an affordable manner. Something the government can afford,” he said.
The Minister noted that the government had commenced the implementation of the demands of the lecturers and other staff unions, saying the current administration of President Tinubu released ₦50 billion Earned Academic Allowance some months ago.
He added that N150 billion was allocated in the 2025 budget as a revitalisation fund for tertiary institutions, while the issues of promotion arrears would be captured in the 2026 budget.
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ASUU Begins Mobilisation for Nationwide Strike

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has began mobilizing members for industrial action.
The union said the move followed the Federal Government’s silence despite being served a strike notice addressed to all relevant authorities, including the Minister of Labour and Employment, Maigari Dingyadi.
Last Monday, ASUU announced that it would shut down all public universities to press home its demands. The notice, effective from Sunday, September 28, 2025, will begin with a two-week warning strike before transitioning into a total and indefinite strike if the government fails to act.
In a new letter dated October 5, 2025, and signed by its president, Prof. Chris Piwuna, ASUU reaffirmed its decision to shut down universities, citing government inaction.
He said, “The National Executive Council (NEC) of our Union, at its emergency meeting of 29th September, 2025, having evaluated the results of the referendum held across our branches, resolved to give the government a fourteen-day ultimatum to resolve the issues contained in the negotiated document which has been transmitted to the government since February, 2025.

“It was further resolved that the union will proceed on a two-week warning strike at the expiration of the ultimatum if the government fails to take acceptable and satisfactory steps to address the lingering issues.

 
“The resolutions were immediately communicated to the Honourable Minister of Labour, the Honourable Minister of Education and the Nigeria Labour Congress.
 
“It is now one week since those resolutions were reached and communicated to the appropriate authorities. I regret to inform you that there is no meaningful development deserving of any consideration to be reported.
 
“As we enter the second and final week of the ultimatum, thank you on behalf of NEC for the patience and understanding which you demonstrated since the commencement of this torturous negotiation that has unjustifiably lasted over eight years.
 
“The goal of our current action remains principally to compel the Government to sign and implement the renegotiated agreement document, amongst other demands.
 
“The days ahead call for the mobilisation of every member of our union to ensure unity of purpose. No one should be left out of the struggle for our welfare, stem the Jupa syndrome and reposition the Nigerian University System (NUS) for global competitiveness.
 
“We are strong when we organise, but weakened when we agonise! Our Union has always acted in solidarity as a collective; this action will not be different.
 
“Members are to take instructions only from their Chairpersons. When in doubt, members should consult their Chairpersons, Zonal Coordinators and attend Congress meetings regularly for updates on further developments.”
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Another Strike Looms As ASUU Gives FG Deadline

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has issued a 14-day ultimatum to the federal government.

ASUU said FG must settle its unresolved issues or lecturers will embark on another strike.
ASUU made the decision following a National Executive Council meeting held on Sunday at the University of Abuja.
The national president of ASUU, Prof. Chris Piwuna made this known in a copy of strike action he personally signed, The PUNCH reports.
The notice read: “At the National Executive Council meeting held at the University of Abuja on the 28th of September, 2025, the Union decried the neglect of the University system and the government’s consistent refusal to heed to its demands.
 
“Accordingly, ASUU has given the Federal Government of Nigeria an Ultimatum of fourteen (14) days within which to address these issues. If at the end of the fourteen-day ultimatum, the Federal Government fails to address these issues, the Union may have no option but to, first, embark on a two-week warning strike and thereafter, a total and indefinite strike.”
Recall that the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Education set up a committee headed by the permanent secretary of the ministry, Abel Enitan to look into a proposal for ASUU in a bid to ensure stability across universities.
ASUU’s demands remain renegotiation of the 2009 agreement, adequate revitalisation funds for univer­sities, settlement of outstanding salary arrears, and sustainable funding mechanisms.

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