The Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Polytechnics (SSANIP) has rejected the reviewed Schemes of Service for Nigerian Polytechnics prepared by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), citing alleged bias and wide disparities against non-teaching staff.
The rejection was formally conveyed in a minority report submitted to the Minister of Education following a stakeholders’ meeting held in Abuja on Monday, January 19, 2026. The report was signed by SSANIP’s National President, Comrade Philip Adebanjo Ogunsipe.
According to the association, the reviewed schemes introduce sharp disparities between teaching and non-teaching staff at the point of entry into service, a development it described as discriminatory and inimical to industrial harmony.
SSANIP argued that the schemes would also stifle the career progression of non-teaching staff by preventing those with first degrees from advancing to CONTEDISS 15, which is equivalent to Grade Level 17.
Ogunsipe said relevant documentary evidence, including documents from the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission confirming the existence of the CONTEDISS 15 salary structure, as well as related circulars from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, were ignored during the meeting despite their relevance.
The association also expressed strong displeasure over comments credited to the Chairman of the Committee of Heads of Polytechnics and Colleges of Technology of Nigeria (COHEADS), who reportedly stated that rectors and certain categories of non-teaching staff should not retire on the same grade.
Ogunsipe described the remark as demeaning, elitist, discriminatory and contrary to extant public service rules.
With the submission of the minority report, SSANIP said it had passed a vote of no confidence in the ability of the NBTE to produce what it termed “a fair, balanced and acceptable” Schemes of Service for polytechnics, accusing the board of persistent bias and disregard for established public service regulations.
The association appealed to the Minister of Education to objectively review its protest in the interest of equity, industrial peace and strict adherence to public service norms.
Ogunsipe expressed confidence in the minister’s leadership, describing him as a dispassionate public servant capable of ensuring justice in the matter.
SSANIP further argued that accepting its position would ensure that conditions applicable in universities and colleges of education are not denied to polytechnic staff.
The association also rejected the decision reached at the stakeholders’ meeting to exclude the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation from the preparation and approval of Schemes of Service, insisting that the office remains the statutory authority saddled with that responsibility.
