A data from the National Union of Teachers (NUT) has revealed that several months after the minimum wage was officially signed by the then President Muhammadu Buhari, now late, nine states of the federation have yet to implement the new minimum wage of N70,000 for teachers.
The states, according to the data are: Adamawa, Abia, Ebonyi, Enugu, Gombe Kaduna, Nasarawa, Yobe, and Zamfara.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu signed the minimum wage bill into law on July 29, 2024, following its passage by the National Assembly on July 23, 2024.
It was gathered that, as at last year, no fewer than 12 states of the federation were still paying teachers, especially those under the employment of the local government, N18,000 minimum wage.
What this means is that the teachers in the 12 states, as of October 2024, were receiving the old N18,000 minimum wage and had not even enjoyed the N30,000 approved by the late President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the data, Abia State has yet to implement the minimum wage for teachers.
In Adamawa State, despite the fact that had moved from the N18,000 minimum wage to N30,000 approved by the late President Buhari, teachers were yet to enjoy the new minimum wage of N70,000.
In Ebonyi State, the minimum wage for teachers was yet to be implemented at all.
For Enugu, the NUT said the minimum wage had not been implemented, although the state government added N50,000 to the salaries of workers, including teachers, and labelled it an enhanced wage award.
In Gombe, the data from the NUT revealed that the minimum wage had not been implemented for primary school teachers.
In Kaduna State, the government blamed non-implementation on teachers’ verification exercise.
In Nasarawa, Yobe, and Zamfara states, the minimum wage was yet to be implemented for teachers, according to the NUT data.
Recall that recently, teachers across the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) embarked on an over 100-day strike due to the failure of Area Councils to implement the minimum wage for teachers.
The teachers later called off strike, after the area council chairmen agreed to a slash of their internally generated revenue to pay the teachers.
Speaking on the data, the NUT National President ,Titus Amba, appealed to states that are yet implement the N70,000 minimum wage to start without further delay.
Amba also asked states implementing the new wage to let it reach all categories of teachers.
“Let the minimum wage reach all workers so everyone will feel a part of it.
“It is unfair for those not getting the higher wage and it will affect the balance of education delivery,” the the NUT boss said.
