The trade unions, operating under the umbrella of the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council, JNPSNC, have urged the federal government and state governments to approve and implement a 400 per cent increase in the present N70,000 national minimum wage to cushion the devastating effects of the country’s economic hardship.
The demand was part of decisions made at the end of a two-day National Retreat and Expanded National Executive Council, or NEC, meeting of the JNPSNC at the Oasis Conference and Event Centre, Osogbo, Osun State, Vanguard reported.
In a communiqué signed by the National Chairman of the council, Benjamin Uyanto and the National Secretary, Olowoyo Gbenga, they voiced worry about the diminishing purchasing power of Nigerian workers. They said many public officials are having to deal with the rising cost of living.
The statement said the current economic realities had imposed significant hardship on workers and their dependants and that the government had to intervene urgently.
“The federal and state governments should take intervention measures to mitigate the present undeserved hardship. “It is therefore imperative that government at all levels should consider approving and implementing 400 percent of the current N70,000 national minimum wage to tackle the current economic challenges faced by workers and their families,” they said.
The meeting, attended by national and state leaders of affiliate unions, state chairmen, secretaries and other officers from all parts of the federation, also called on organised labour and government to commence talks on a new national minimum wage by July 2026 ahead of the statutory review coming up in the first quarter of 2027.
The council highlighted early discussions would reduce the delays, mistrust and conflicts which typically follow salary review processes.
The union voiced its displeasure at the lack of some state governments to completely execute consequential compensation adjustments stemming from the N70,000 minimum wage on the implementation.
It warned that the national leadership of the JNPSNC would take “appropriate hard steps” against any state government that refused to implement the authorised modifications for workers.
The council also expressed worry over the failure of both federal and state governments to implement agreements achieved via collective bargaining, calling the practice a major cause of mistrust between government and labour.
The union also urged the accountant-general of the federation to accelerate payment without further delay on workers welfare, just as it called for the quick implementation of the 40 per cent special allowance granted by the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission.
It also called for the execution of occupational hazard allowances allowed for some agricultural experts in the public sector, saying the approval was made by the 46th National Council on Establishment but sought for the implementation.
The council encouraged the federal government to take urgent action to resuscitate the economy, strengthen the Naira, enhance electricity generation and give tax reliefs to workers and investors to stimulate industrial expansion and local production.
Top government officials including Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke; representatives from Federal Ministry of Labour; Heads of Service; Permanent Secretaries and Directors of Establishment Matters from several states across the federation were present at the retreat and NEC meeting.
The gathering participants voted a vote of confidence on the national leadership of the JNPSNC and adopted a four-year single term for both national and state leadership positions of the council, to be effective from the next election.
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