Wike’s no-work, no-pay directive unconstitutional, unenforceable – NLC, NUT
Mr Wike on Friday directed area council chairpersons to enforce the no-work, no-pay policy against workers participating in the strike. The post Wike’s no-work, no-pay directive unconstitutional, unenforceable – NLC,…
The dispute centres on the FCT Minister Nyesom Wike's directive to area council chairpersons to withhold pay from civil servants who join an ongoing strike, invoking the "no-work, no-pay" principle that successive Nigerian governments have applied during labour disputes to discourage prolonged industrial action. The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), representing affected workers, have pushed back, arguing that the directive infringes on constitutionally and internationally protected rights to unionise and strike.
The disagreement centres on whether strikes conducted through due process are protected activity rather than grounds for punitive pay deductions. The unions cite Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution alongside the Trade Unions Act and ILO Conventions 87, 98 and 151 — all ratified by Nigeria — as legal backing for their position, while Wike's directive reflects a long-standing government stance that has previously been contested in similar face-offs between Nigerian authorities and labour unions. Not yet clear from the coverage is the specific demand behind the strike, how area council chairpersons intend to respond to Wike's directive, or whether the matter will be tested in court.