More than eleven months after President Bola Tinubu signed the new N70,000 minimum wage into law, at least nine states are yet to comply with the policy for teachers—prompting fresh outrage from the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) over what it describes as “systemic injustice” and neglect of the education sector.
Findings by PLATFORM TIMES revealed that states such as Abia, Adamawa, Ebonyi, Enugu, Gombe, Kaduna, Nasarawa, Yobe, and Zamfara have either partially implemented the wage or failed to begin any form of payment—particularly for teachers employed by local governments.
Worse still, in some of these states, teachers are reportedly still being paid the outdated N18,000 minimum wage, which was last reviewed over a decade ago.
In Adamawa, for instance, public school teachers have only just been migrated to the N30,000 wage structure, still N40,000 short of the new standard.
Gombe State has completely sidelined primary school teachers in its wage upgrade, while Enugu State merely paid a one-time N50,000 bonus across board without formal adoption of the new minimum wage.
Kaduna State attributed its delay to an ongoing verification exercise, a response critics say reflects deliberate bureaucratic sabotage. Meanwhile, Abia and Ebonyi states have yet to make any tangible moves toward implementation, leaving teachers stranded amid the country’s worsening economic realities.
Speaking on the matter, the NUT National President, Comrade Titus Amba, condemned the non-compliance, describing it as a direct attack on the dignity of teachers and the integrity of public education.
“Let the minimum wage reach all workers so everyone will feel a part of it,” Amba told PLATFORM TIMES. “It is unfair for those not getting the higher wage, and it will destabilize education delivery across the country.”
Amba also warned that the continued neglect of primary school teachers in several states signals a troubling trend of systemic marginalisation, which could exacerbate the shortage of qualified teachers and threaten the future of education nationwide.
The crisis draws parallels with the recent strike action by teachers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), which dragged on for over 100 days and was only resolved after local council chairmen agreed to divert their internally generated revenue to meet wage demands.
Education stakeholders have raised the alarm over the growing wage disparity, warning that failure to implement the N70,000 minimum wage could spark further unrest and brain drain in a profession already plagued by low morale, underfunding, and poor infrastructure.
The NUT has now called on the Federal Government to step in decisively, compelling all 36 states and the FCT to enforce the wage law without further delay. The union also urged states already paying the new wage to ensure full inclusivity by covering all teaching cadres, from primary to secondary levels.
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