Anambra State Implements Salary Cuts for Workers Who Skipped Monday Sit-at-Home
The Anambra State Government has taken decisive action by slashing the February salaries of civil servants who failed to report for duty on Mondays. These days were previously observed as sit-at-home days declared by the Indigenous People of Biafra, marking a significant move to end compliance with the protest order.
Pro-Rata Salary Policy Announced
Earlier, the state announced the commencement of pro-rata salary payments as part of efforts to terminate adherence to the Monday sit-at-home directive. Effective February 2026, workers' salaries would be calculated based on the actual days worked, with the government declaring an official end to the protest within the state.
Workers Report Significant Salary Reductions
However, numerous workers have reported receiving substantially reduced salaries for February, sparking widespread complaints at the Jerome Udoji State Secretariat in Awka. Several staff members informed journalists that the deductions did not accurately reflect the number of Mondays they missed, suggesting potential errors in computation.
One worker, who requested anonymity due to fears of victimization, revealed that a colleague received only N10,000 after deductions. Another employee in the Ministry of Information stated he received just N3,500 out of a salary exceeding N80,000, highlighting the severity of the cuts.
"One of my colleagues said she received her salary with N10,000 deducted. The cuts are irregular, but I think there were errors in the computation because some people who missed work only once or twice had substantial deductions from their salaries," the anonymous worker explained.
Another affected employee added, "I am surprised to see huge deductions when I received the alert for my February salary. Over N80,000 was deducted from my salary for missing work for two Mondays. I think it was miscalculated, as two Mondays were not supposed to be up to that amount."
Government Confirms Disciplinary Measure
In response to the complaints, the state Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, confirmed that the deductions were imposed as a disciplinary measure for failing to report to work on Mondays. He emphasized that the policy requires employees to clock in and out to provide evidence of attendance.
"The salary cut is a punishment for failure to come to work on Mondays. The instruction was that when you come to work on Mondays, you clock in, and at the close of work, you clock out. That is to show that you came to work. But, if you came to work on Mondays, but you didn't clock in, and didn't clock out, it means that you didn't come to work because there is no evidence to show that you came to work," Mefor stated.
Strong Administrative Move to Enforce Normalcy
This policy represents one of the most robust administrative actions yet by the Anambra State Government to enforce normal working activities on Mondays. Authorities are actively seeking to restore full compliance with official work schedules, aiming to curb the disruption caused by the sit-at-home protests.
The move underscores the government's commitment to maintaining productivity and order within the civil service, even as it faces backlash from workers over the perceived harshness and potential miscalculations in the salary deductions.
