The Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) has faulted the implementation of the Harmonised Retirement Age for Teachers in Nigeria Act, 2022, describing it as discriminatory and unfair to non-teaching workers in basic and post-basic education.
The union said that while the law extended the retirement age for teachers, it deliberately excluded critical non-teaching personnel, including administrators, bursars, laboratory technicians, librarians, ICT officers, guidance counsellors, cleaners and security staff, all of whom it described as essential to the effective functioning of schools.
In a position paper titled “Rethinking Equity in Nigeria’s Education Policy: The Neglect of Basic and Post-Basic Education Workers”, NASU’s General Secretary, Mr. Peters Adeyemi, said the policy had reinforced long-standing inequalities within Nigeria’s education workforce.
“Education is widely recognised as the foundation of national development, yet government policy continues to reflect deep inequities,” Mr. Adeyemi said. “While welfare issues in tertiary institutions often receive attention, workers in basic and post-basic education, particularly non-teaching staff, remain persistently marginalised.”
He noted that although the 2022 retirement-age reform was designed to retain experienced teachers and improve learning outcomes, it remained an incomplete policy that failed to recognise the integrated nature of school systems.
According to him, the exclusion of non-teaching staff creates an artificial hierarchy of value, demoralises essential workers, accelerates staff turnover and ultimately undermines the quality of education.
Mr. Adeyemi stressed that schools operate as ecosystems and cannot function effectively without support staff, adding that the selective application of the law contradicts Nigeria’s constitutional obligations and international labour standards.
He cited Section 18 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which guarantees equal and adequate educational opportunities, as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Labour Organisation Conventions 100 and 111, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, all of which emphasise fairness and non-discrimination.
“The exclusion of non-teaching staff from welfare-enhancing policies clearly violates the principles of fairness, equity and natural justice,” he said.
The NASU general secretary also decried what he described as a systemic bias in favour of tertiary institutions, noting that workers in universities and polytechnics often enjoy better conditions due to stronger union influence, while those in basic and post-basic education rarely embark on industrial action and remain vulnerable to neglect.
He linked the marginalisation of workers at the basic education level to Nigeria’s poor learning outcomes, arguing that weak support structures at foundational stages have far-reaching consequences for tertiary education and national development.
NASU called on the federal and state governments to urgently review the implementation of the Harmonised Retirement Age Act, ensure uniform adoption across states, and extend retirement-age benefits to non-teaching staff.
The union also urged governments to develop comprehensive welfare packages for education workers, including housing, healthcare, workplace safety and professional development, while strengthening funding and accountability in basic education institutions.
“The Harmonised Retirement Age Act represents progress, but its exclusion of non-teaching staff exposes deeper systemic inequities,” Mr. Adeyemi said. “Teachers alone cannot drive learning outcomes. Every school depends on a network of support staff whose contributions are indispensable.”
