Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) says it will soon commence negotiations with the Federal Government for a new national minimum wage, demanding at least ₦500,000 monthly for Nigerian workers.
Mr Joe Ajaero, NLC President, made the demand on Thursday while speaking at the Rights of Workers Summit in Birnin Kebbi through the union’s Deputy President, Mr Audu Titus Amba.
Ajaero said the current ₦70,000 national minimum wage was no longer sufficient to meet the basic needs of workers amid rising inflation and the increasing cost of living.
“Anything less than ₦500,000 cannot cater for workers. The current minimum wage is due for review, and we will soon begin negotiations with the government,” he said.
He urged workers to prepare for the forthcoming negotiations, stressing the need for a wage structure that reflected prevailing economic realities.
Also speaking at the summit, Mr Festus Osifo, President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), represented by the union’s Secretary-General, Mr Nuhu Toro, said worsening economic conditions had significantly eroded workers’ purchasing power.
Toro cited rising food prices, transportation costs, rent and inflation as major factors that had made the existing minimum wage inadequate for many workers.
The demand comes two years after President Bola Tinubu signed the National Minimum Wage Act, 2024, into law on July 29, 2024.
The legislation increased Nigeria’s national minimum wage from ₦30,000 to ₦70,000 per month following negotiations between the Federal Government and organised labour.
The Act also provides for a review of the national minimum wage every three years, setting the stage for fresh negotiations on the wage structure.
The NLC said the forthcoming negotiations would be necessary to ensure that workers’ earnings remained responsive to prevailing economic conditions and the rising cost of living.
