Electricity Workers Begin Nationwide Strike Over Unpaid Wages and Poor Welfare

Punchngs July 29, 2025

Electricity Workers Begin Nationwide Strike Over Unpaid Wages and Poor Welfare

Nigeria News
25.09.2025
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Electricity workers across Nigeria have begun a nationwide strike to protest unpaid wages, poor welfare conditions, and the failure to implement the national minimum wage. The strike, which started on Wednesday, is already raising concerns about potential disruptions in power supply nationwide.

The National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) issued the directive, accusing the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) of neglecting critical staff welfare issues despite repeated warnings and an expired ultimatum.

In a memo signed by Dominic Igwebike, NUEE’s Acting General Secretary, the union announced the strike after its ultimatum to TCN expired without resolution. According to the memo, TCN management has shown no concrete plan to address the growing grievances of electricity workers nationwide.

Electricity Workers Begin Nationwide Strike Over Unpaid Wages and Poor Welfare

NUEE accused the management of treating serious welfare matters with levity and warned that the electricity sector risks further decline if workers’ rights continue to be ignored.

The union outlined several grievances that have remained unresolved for months, including:

Non-payment of staff salaries since April 2025.
Failure to implement the national minimum wage across the electricity sector.
Casualisation of workers in violation of labour standards.
Lack of operational vehicles and working tools essential for daily operations.
Non-provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) since 2021.
Unresolved issues from the unbundling of TCN exercise.
Outstanding retirement benefits owed to staff.

These issues, according to NUEE, have undermined staff morale and worsened service delivery in Nigeria’s already fragile electricity sector.

Electricity Workers Begin Nationwide Strike Over Unpaid Wages and Poor Welfare

In its strongly worded memo, NUEE said:

“It is unfortunate that TCN management has chosen to treat these matters with levity and without a clear roadmap for resolution. We cannot continue to fold our arms while our rights are violated and the electricity sector drifts further into decline.”

The union instructed its members nationwide to fully comply with the strike directive until all demands are met by TCN management and relevant authorities.

The strike threatens to trigger another wave of nationwide power outages as electricity workers withdraw their services. Industry observers warn that disruptions could affect households, businesses, hospitals, schools, and other critical sectors reliant on stable electricity supply.

Electricity Workers Begin Nationwide Strike Over Unpaid Wages and Poor Welfare

NUEE had previously embarked on similar actions that resulted in widespread blackouts, forcing the Federal Government into emergency negotiations to restore power supply.

Labour experts and energy stakeholders have urged the Federal Government and TCN to immediately engage NUEE in dialogue to avert a prolonged blackout. They emphasize the importance of addressing workers’ welfare and implementing long-overdue reforms in Nigeria’s power sector to prevent recurrent strikes.

With the strike now in effect, attention is focused on how quickly TCN management and the government can respond to NUEE’s demands to restore normalcy and ensure uninterrupted electricity supply.