Non-academic staff at federal universities and inter-university centres across Nigeria have begun a nationwide strike starting Friday, May 1, 2026 [1].

This industrial action disrupts the administrative and technical support systems of the higher education sector, potentially stalling academic calendars and delaying university operations.

Two major unions, the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Nigeria Association of University Staff (NASU), announced the walkout. The groups say the federal government has been slow to renegotiate a 2009 agreement [2] with non-academic staff.

According to a union spokesperson, the unions are forced to strike due to the government's inaction on the 2009 non-academic staff agreement [3]. The unions had previously issued a one-month ultimatum to the government to settle the matter [4].

"We cannot wait any longer; the government must act now," said Peters Adeyemi, the NASU General Secretary [5].

Mohammed Ibrahim, the SSANU President, said the federal government has given them a deadline of one month to settle the 2009 agreement [6].

The unions argue that the government has already completed a similar renegotiation process with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), but has failed to do so for non-academic staff [7]. This discrepancy in treatment has fueled the frustration of the administrative and technical workers who maintain the university same-day operations.

While the strike is currently nationwide, the unions have indicated that the action will remain in effect until the federal government meets their demands for a renegotiation of the terms established in 2009 [2].

“We cannot wait any longer; the government must act now.”

This strike highlights a long-standing tension between academic and non-academic staff in Nigerian universities. By striking now, SSANU and NASU are leveraging their administrative control over university functions to force the government to resolve a 17-year-old agreement. The timing suggests a strategic move to disrupt university operations to increase pressure on the federal government to align non-academic staff benefits with those recently settled with academic staff.