The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has directed its members across Nigeria to embark on an indefinite nationwide strike over the delayed payment of their June 2025 salaries.
The industrial action, which began this week, stems from a resolution by ASUU’s National Executive Council (NEC) to implement a strict “No Pay, No Work” stance whenever salaries are not paid within the first three days of a new month.
ASUU National President, Professor Chris Piwuna, confirmed the development in Abuja, stating that the decision was driven by the continued financial hardship lecturers face due to recurring salary delays.
“Our members are experiencing hardship. Salaries are often delayed by a week or more. At NEC, we agreed that if salaries are not paid within three days of a new month, members should withdraw their services,” Piwuna said.
He attributed the persistent delays not to technical challenges with the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS)—the platform recently adopted for university payrolls—but to what he described as “deliberate negligence” by the Office of the Accountant General.
“When funds are eventually released, there are no complaints of underpayment or technical failure. The system works; it’s the handlers who are stalling. We believe this delay is intentional,” he added.
Professor Piwuna also raised concerns about the lingering issue of Earned Academic Allowances (EAA), revealing that the federal government still owes N10 billion of the previously promised N50 billion.
“We expect the remaining N10 billion to be paid without further delay to prevent another round of agitation,” he cautioned.
In compliance with the national directive, ASUU branches at the University of Jos and the University of Abuja have already downed tools.
Dr. Jurbe Molwus, ASUU Chairman at the University of Jos, confirmed the commencement of the strike, stating that a monitoring team has been deployed to ensure full compliance across departments.
“Lecturers have withdrawn their services due to the unpaid June salaries, in line with the NEC resolution,” Molwus said, warning that continued inaction from the government would result in sustained industrial unrest.
At the University of Abuja, ASUU members also commenced strike action on Monday. While the branch chairman, Dr. Sylvanus Ugoh, was unavailable for comment, the university’s spokesperson, Dr. Habib Yakoob, declined to speak on the issue, referring journalists to the ASUU leadership.
ASUU has long maintained that the timely payment of salaries is not only a contractual obligation but critical to ensuring stability and productivity within the nation’s tertiary education system. The current strike adds to a growing list of confrontations between the academic union and the federal government over lecturers’ welfare and institutional funding.
