FCT Teachers’ Strike Deepens as NUT Rejects UBEB Return-to-Work Directive
The teachers’ strike in the Federal Capital Territory remains active as the Nigeria Union of Teachers rejects a return-to-work directive from the Universal Basic Education Board.
At the same time, the Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools says its members are not participating in the industrial action and should continue working.
The competing positions mean the FCT education sector cannot accurately be described as uniformly shut or fully reopened.
NUT rejects UBEB return-to-work directive
FCT UBEB has directed teachers under its authority to return to work despite the ongoing labour action.
The board reportedly warned that non-compliance could attract sanctions.
NUT responded with a counter-directive telling members to remain on strike in line with the position of the FCT Council of the Nigeria Labour Congress.
That leaves some teachers facing competing instructions from their union and the education authority.
ASUSS says members should remain at work
ASUSS has maintained that it is not participating in the strike.
The union says secondary-school teachers and education officers under its representation should continue reporting for duty.
That position differs directly from NUT’s instruction to remain on strike.
The result is a split rather than a single education-sector position across the FCT.
Promotion dispute remains unresolved
The dispute continues to centre on teachers’ promotion and welfare issues.
Labour has opposed the requirement that vacancies must exist before eligible teachers can be promoted.
It is also seeking reconsideration of eligible teachers from the 2025 promotion cycle and challenging disputed redeployment and demotion decisions.
The FCT Administration had responded before the strike began, but labour says its concerns were not sufficiently resolved.
Parents and students face uncertainty
The competing directives create immediate uncertainty for parents, students, teachers and school administrators.
Participation may differ by school, union affiliation and administrative control.
For that reason, neither a total FCT school shutdown nor full academic resumption is established by the available evidence.
What happens next
The key question is whether the FCT Administration, UBEB and organised labour can resolve the promotion and welfare dispute and reconcile their competing instructions to teachers.
For now, the verified position is:
The FCT strike remains active under the NLC/NUT position, UBEB has directed teachers to return to work, and ASUSS says its members should continue working. The underlying promotion and welfare dispute remains unresolved.
