NLC Demands N794,000 as Minimum Wage for South-West Workers

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has put forth a demand for a new minimum wage of N794,000 for government employees in the South-West region.

Funmi Sessi, the NLC chairperson in Lagos, made the demand on behalf of the workers during a public hearing conducted by the tripartite committee on national minimum wage on Thursday.

Sessi stressed that NLC members in the region unanimously agreed on the proposal.

The fresh demand follows NLC President Joe Ajaero’s call for the Bola Tinubu-led government to prepare for a minimum wage of N1 million.

Ajaero attributed the demand to the country’s soaring inflation rates and the fluctuation of the national currency, the naira.

He said:

“This N1 million may be relevant if the value of the Nigerian (naira) continues to depreciate and if the inflation is not checked because the demand of labour is equally dependent on what is happening in the society.

“You will remember that by the time we were contemplating N200,000, the exchange rate was about N800/N900. As we talk today, the exchange rate is about N1,400 or even more.”

Earlier, on January 30, Vice President Kashim Shettima inaugurated a 37-member panel to address the issue of the new minimum wage.

The committee, chaired by Bukar Goni Aji (former head of service of the federation), includes representatives from federal and state governments, the private sector, and organized labor.