By Felix Durumbah, Abuja
Thoroughly dissatisfied with Tuesday’s verdict of the National Industrial Court (NIC) ordering them to go back to work, striking workers of Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) have promptly headed to the Appeal Court.
The about 40,000-strong workforce are asking the upper court to throw away the ruling of the NIC.
The workers declared an indefinite strike penultimate Monday following the collapse of talks with FCTA authorities over their demands for better conditions of service.
They had complained about alleged lack of promotions; non-payment of five months’ arrears of President Bola Tinubu’s 2023 Wage Award; lack of training and retraining; non-remittance of their pension deductions to their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs), thereby jeopardizing their future; non-payment of six months’ statutory overheads to Heads of Departments to enable them have funds to drive President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda among FCT residents; and several other demands.
Last year, the workers embarked on a three-day protest to press home their demand for some of these needs, but the FCTA Management reportedly did little to assuage the employees’ demands.
The workers followed it up with a 21-day ultimatum, and finally a seven-day ultimatum, which culminated in the current indefinite strike.
Their matter at the Appeal Court is being handled by a five-man team of renowned lawyers including Femi Falana SAN, Funmi Falana SAN, Maxwell Opara, Samuel Ogala and Femi Adedeji.
Documents now in the possession of People&Politics show that the appeal was stamped, received and acknowledged by the Abuja Division of the appellate court on Wednesday, 28 January 2026.
It was marked CA/ABJ/PRS/ROA/CV/91MI/2026.
The Applicants are Rifkatu Iortyer and Abdullahi Umar Saleh, both president and secretary, respectively, of Joint Unions Action Congress (JUAC), the FCTA workers’ umbrella body of all trade union affiliates operating in FCTA.
Minister of FCT, Barrister Nyesom Wike, and FCTA are the Respondents in the matter.
Last Tuesday, Justice Emmanuel Subilim of NIC granted an interlocutory injunction sought by Wike and FCTA (Claimants) ordering the workers to suspend their indefinite strike and return to work immediately.
The judge held that the suspension of the strike was to prevent the paralyzing of government businesses in the territory,if the strike became prolonged.
He noted that though strike was a right of workers to express their grievances, its adoption in industrial relations was not absolute.
Citing Section 18 (1)b of the Trade Dispute Act, Subilim explained that workers cannot embark on strike over a dispute that had already been referred to NIC, and ordered the workers back to work.
Reacting, however, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) strongly criticized the ruling ,in a press statement, slamming the court for not granting the workers any reliefs, but granted the ones sought by Wike and FCTA.
Unbowed by the NIC order, FCTA workers addressed newsmen after the ruling and vowed not to step into their offices, insisting that they would fight on and continue the strike till the Minister and FCTA grants all their 18 demands.
People&Politics, which is a keen follower of developments in FCTA, yesterday monitored compliance to the order to resume and found out that most staff members did not report for work; several offices still had chains and padlocks sealing them off.
Though the Minister later warned that FCTA would make a scapegoat of any staff member who failed to report for work, most workers defied him and still stayed away even as their union leaders have now approached the Appeal Court over the NIC verdict.
In their Motion on Notice, the workers sought leave of the appellate court to appeal the NIC verdict,citing Section 243 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
Furthermore, they prayed the court for an order staying the execution of Subilim’s ruling pending the determination of the main appeal.
The union leaders also urged the Appeal Court to hear the appeal and “not shut out the Applicant and thousands of its members desirous of ventilating their grievances pursuant to Sections 6(6)(b) and 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).”
People&Politics gathered that,as of yesterday, no date had been fixed for hearing.
*PHOTO CAPTION: FCTA workers protesting near the NIC…this week.
