Gombe Tertiary Institutions’ Workers Declare Indefinite Strike Over Unpaid Allowances

Workers in four public tertiary institutions in Gombe State have declared an indefinite strike over unresolved salary adjustments, unpaid allowances and other staff welfare demands, following the state government’s failure to address their grievances.

The Joint Union of Gombe State Tertiary Institutions (JOUGTIN) said the strike would commence at midnight on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, after the expiration of a one-month window granted to the state government to resolve the outstanding issues.

In a communiqué issued, the unions said the decision followed the government’s failure to present concrete and verifiable commitments towards resolving the dispute.

They said the industrial action became necessary after repeated engagements with the government failed to produce a satisfactory resolution of their demands.

The affected institutions are the College of Education, Billiri; Gombe State Polytechnic, Bajoga; College of Health Science and Technology, Kaltungo; and College of Education and Legal Studies, Nafada.

JOUGTIN comprises the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), Senior Staff Union of Colleges of Education in Nigeria (SSUCOEN), Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics (SSANIP), and Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU).

LEADERSHIP recalls that JOUGTIN embarked on a 14-day warning strike about two months ago over what it described as the continued non-implementation and non-payment of outstanding staff welfare entitlements by the state government.

Among the unions’ outstanding demands are the implementation of the N30,000 and N70,000 national minimum wage provisions, including consequential adjustments, as well as approved 25 and 35 per cent CONPCASS/CONTISS salary adjustments.

The unions are also demanding the implementation of the approved 2024 salary structure, payment of outstanding salary adjustments arising from minimum wage provisions, and settlement of approved wage awards, palliatives and other relief measures introduced to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal.

Other demands include the payment of annual increments outstanding for more than eight years and the implementation of approved CATA and CONTTA allowances for staff of public tertiary institutions.

JOUGTIN said it issued a 14-day ultimatum to the government on August 17, 2026, before embarking on a two-week warning strike on September 2 after the deadline expired without a satisfactory response.

According to the communiqué, the government subsequently appealed to the unions to suspend the planned indefinite strike and allow a one-month period for further negotiations.

The unions accepted the request, with the agreed period running from September 17 to October 16.

However, JOUGTIN said its leadership could not unilaterally grant another extension because the congresses of its constituent unions had already resolved that an indefinite strike would commence if the demands were not addressed within the agreed period.

“The decision to commence the strike therefore reflects the collective resolutions of the constituent unions and follows the expiration of the agreed window without the anticipated resolution,” the communiqué stated.

The union expressed regret over the disruption the strike could cause to students, parents and the wider education community but maintained that resolving the longstanding welfare and remuneration issues was essential to staff welfare and institutional stability.