The Taraba state chapter of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) Monday lamented the non-payment of primary school workers for over three months.
State chairman of NUT, Comrade Peter Julius, who spoke with journalists in Jalingo said the situation was becoming pathetic.
He said since May, the teachers have not been paid their salary which has now made life unbearable, adding that many of them have not been able to afford their three squeal meal per day.
He said, “When we came on board, there were issues of salary, there were salaries that have not been paid to us but the union is still in talking terms with the government agitating, soliciting with the state government to pay us our salary. This is not what we should be doing because it is our right to be paid our salaries; it is not a privilege.”
He noted that primary school teachers have not enjoyed the N18, 000 minimum wage implemented in the state some years ago.
“Even the eighteen thousand minimum wage was not fully implemented to the primary school teachers for more than six years today, thank God the thirty thousand minimum wage is now on board but it has not also been implemented in the state.
“Our major yearning now is; let our arrears be paid, could you imagine today is 10th August as I speak to you our Salary for the month of May have not been paid to us teachers, we are yet to receive our salary that is why we are calling on the state government through our board chairman to talk to the government to pay us our emoluments because the children we are teaching are the children of members of the society,” he stressed.
He called on the members of the union to be calm as its leaders are aware of the situation and were working to ensure that the right of the members of the union is protected.
The NUT chairman, however, noted that the state government engagement of three thousand education rescue teachers in the state has further boosted learning in the state but the non-payment of teachers’ salaries is threatening the gains made so far.
