The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has officially rejected the Federal Government’s proposed ₦70,000 wage award, calling instead for an immediate salary increase for workers alongside the fulfillment of outstanding agreements with health workers.
In a joint statement issued on Wednesday by President Festus Osifo and Secretary-General N.A. Toro, following a National Administrative Council meeting in Abuja, the labor center argued that temporary wage awards are fundamentally inadequate to combat the biting economic hardships currently facing Nigerian citizens.
The Congress disclosed that it has formally written to the Federal Government through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) to press for an urgent salary review.
The union leadership held consultative meetings with government officials, including the SGF, where they formally registered their rejection of the proposed wage relief measure.
Furthermore, the TUC criticized the government for failing to honor previous commitments, pointing to unpaid 2023 wage award obligations and a neglected seven-month-old agreement regarding the adjustment of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure for health workers under the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU).
Addressing the timing of the adjustments, the union asserted that the government does not need to wait for full national minimum wage negotiations before boosting wages, emphasizing that no legal ceiling prevents employers from paying higher salaries to alleviate poverty.
To make a meaningful impact, the TUC proposed raising the salary floor for the lowest-paid worker from the current ₦70,000 to ₦300,000, accompanied by appropriate consequential adjustments across all other salary levels to help workers cope with skyrocketing food, transportation, and healthcare costs.
