FCT Teachers Declare Indefinite Strike Over 40 Months of Unpaid Arrears

Public schools across the Federal Capital Territory will shut down from Monday as teachers begin an indefinite strike over unpaid entitlements stretching back years.

The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), FCT Wing, issued the directive after months of failed negotiations with the FCT Administration. At the centre of the dispute is a committee report submitted in August 2025 — detailing outstanding payments owed to teachers — that the government has simply refused to implement.

Forty months without pay

The numbers tell the story. While the government has acknowledged the ₦70,000 minimum wage, teachers in the FCT are still owed 40 months of arrears. That is over three years of pay that never arrived. For educators already dealing with rising food prices and transport costs, the promise of a new minimum wage means nothing when old debts remain unpaid.

The union’s position is unambiguous. In a communiqué, the NUT FCT Wing declared: “The Council resolved that all public primary and secondary school teachers in the FCT shall, with effect from Monday, proceed on an indefinite strike until our demands are met.”

Students caught in the middle

As usual, the people who will feel the impact most are the students. With exams around the corner and no sign of a resolution, families across Abuja are left scrambling for alternatives that simply do not exist in the public system.

The government has not yet responded publicly to the strike notice, and there is no timeline for when the August 2025 committee report might be acted upon.

Sources: ABN TV, TheWill News, OGTV