From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has demanded the immediate commencement of negotiations for a new national minimum wage, rejecting the Federal Government’s position that opening talks before June 2027 would be premature.
The Congress accused the government of confusing negotiations with implementation, insisting that preparations must begin ahead of the expiration of the current N70,000 minimum wage arrangement to prevent delays and further hardship for workers.
“The government is not being asked to implement a new wage today, but to commence the process of negotiation,” NLC President, Joe Ajaero, said in a letter to the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Muhammad Dingyadi.
The Congress also demanded immediate wage awards, implementation of tax relief measures agreed upon in 2023 and a reduction in petrol prices to the level prevailing when the current minimum wage was signed into law in 2024.
Ajaero’s letter responded to the minister’s correspondence of October 12, 2026, in which the Federal Government maintained that the N70,000 minimum wage, signed into law by President Bola Tinubu on July 29, 2024, was due for review on June 1, 2027.
Dingyadi had argued that commencing another review barely two years into implementation would be premature, inconsistent with the law and disruptive to industrial relations.
However, the NLC faulted that interpretation, saying the process of negotiating a replacement wage should begin in October 2026.
It explained that preliminary steps, including inviting nominations, inaugurating the National Minimum Wage Tripartite Committee and setting its agenda, had to precede substantive negotiations.
Citing the original National Minimum Wage Act, signed on April 18, 2019, the Congress argued that negotiations should commence at least six months before the existing wage arrangement expired.
It urged the government to invite nominations and inaugurate the tripartite committee before the expiration of its ultimatum.
The Congress also rejected the government’s reliance on the 133 per cent increase from the previous N30,000 minimum wage and interventions such as the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas initiative and food security programmes as evidence of adequate support for workers.
According to the NLC, inflation, naira depreciation and higher petrol prices have eroded the purchasing power of the current wage, leaving workers struggling to meet the costs of food, transportation, housing, healthcare and education.
“The Federal Government should understand that a wage increase that is immediately swallowed by hyperinflation is not a wage increase; it is a statistical illusion,” the Congress stated.
It criticised the implementation of the CNG initiative, saying inadequate infrastructure and shortages of gas and conversion kits had restricted its benefits to workers.
The NLC maintained that workers could not continue to bear the burden of economic reforms without immediate measures to cushion the rising cost of living.
Beyond its wage demands, the Congress urged the government to implement the terms of settlement reached with the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) and address the demands of the Joint Public Sector Negotiating Council (JPSNC).
While acknowledging Dingyadi’s assurance that the government remained open to dialogue, it said engagement without clear timelines and immediate relief measures would amount to rhetoric.
The Congress reaffirmed its commitment to negotiations but insisted that the government must demonstrate the political will to address workers’ demands through concrete action.