The Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) has warned that Nigerian workers can no longer survive on their current wages, noting that inflation, poor governance and stagnated pay have eroded the dignity of labour.

President of NASU, Makolo Hassan, stated this while addressing delegates at the opening of the Union’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Abuja, yesterday.

Hassan said wages across the country no longer reflect the economic realities workers face daily, urging the Federal Government to introduce a living wage policy that adjusts periodically in line with inflation and cost-of-living indices.

The labour leader called on government to reform the pension and health insurance systems, strengthen the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), and ensure affordable housing for workers.

According to him, Nigeria cannot claim progress when those who build its economy are left without protection or social security after years of service.

“Our wages no longer reflect the realities of today’s economy. Inflation has wiped out the value of salaries, leaving many workers unable to meet basic needs. The situation is worse for workers in some states who continue to receive amputated salaries.

“Our nation cannot claim progress when those who build it are left without protection. The weakness of our social security system leaves Nigerian workers exposed to poverty, insecurity, and indignity.”

He also vowed that the union would resist efforts by “unscrupulous individuals” to form splinter groups, accusing some managements of funding unregistered associations to weaken NASU’s influence.

“Certain former members and their collaborators have continued to push for illegal registration of splinter unions in areas where NASU is lawfully recognised. Some managements even deduct and divert check-off dues to such associations. NASU will not allow this illegality,” he warned.

The union leader called for adequate funding of the education sector, saying poor investment in infrastructure and staff welfare undermines the nation’s future.

He also urged governments at all levels to strengthen social protection, healthcare, and housing schemes, saying “a protected and well-motivated worker is the true engine of national development.”

Hassan further expressed the union’s commitment to defending its lawful jurisdiction and ensuring strict compliance with Nigeria’s labour laws, while also pressing for improved working conditions, timely salary payments, and respect for collective bargaining agreements.

More also, he urged the Federal Government to address the rising cost of living, review wage structures, and stabilise the economy to safeguard the welfare of Nigerian workers.

“No nation can rise above the welfare of its workers. When workers prosper, the nation flourishes, but when workers are neglected, the foundation of the economy begins to crumble,” he added.

Also speaking, NASU’s General Secretary, Peters Adeyemi, condemned the persistent threat by government officials to invoke the “No Work, No Pay” policy, describing it as an attempt to intimidate and silence legitimate trade union actions.

Adeyemi stressed that strikes are never spontaneous decisions but last-resort measures triggered by government failures to honour agreements freely entered into with unions.

He accused some government officials of hypocrisy, saying they ignore the law when workers are owed months of salaries but are quick to wield the “No Work, No Pay” threat when unions act in self-defence.

“Let it be clearly stated that this threat is nothing but a deliberate attempt to intimidate, silence, and criminalize legitimate trade union actions.

“Union leaders are not irrational individuals who wake up one morning to declare strikes for sport. Strikes are not tea parties. They are painful, last-resort measures provoked by the consistent failures, neglect, and insincerity of government officials.

“The same officials who shout ‘No Work, No Pay’ are often silent when workers have gone for months without pay, in clear violation of Section 15 of the Labour Act which mandates regular payment of wages,” he said.

He insisted that strikes remain a legitimate industrial relations tool recognised by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and urged the government to act with sincerity in dealing with unions.

“It is sheer hypocrisy and incompetence for government officials to provoke strikes through negligence, and then criminalise those same strikes. At the ILO level, strikes have never been declared a crime,” Adeyemi noted.

Hassan decried the growing casualisation of workers, describing it as “a modern form of exploitation that denies employees job security, benefits, and rights.”

Earlier, Director-General of the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Prof. Abdullahi Mustapha, commended NASU for advancing workers’ welfare and sustaining industrial harmony.

“NASU has remained a voice of conscience within Nigeria’s labour movement, a union that stands for equity, accountability, and service.”

Mustapha added that NABDA values its partnership with NASU and that beyond welfare, the union is a partner in innovation and national development through its dedication to decent work.

Also speaking, the Executive Secretary of the Organisation of Trade Unions of West Africa (OTUWA), Mr John Odah, urged unions to embrace Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a tool for progress.

“AI should not be seen only as a threat to jobs but as a means to enhance productivity and drive national development,” he said. (The Sun)