The Federal government of Nigeria led by President Bola Tinubu announced on Sunday evening that the ₦25,000 provisional wage increment, initially proposed for low-grade workers, will now apply to civil servants across all levels.
The Chief of Staff to President Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, declared that the ₦25,000 provisional pay increase for low-grade federal workers, as an intervention, will now encompass all categories of workers.
However, it was reported that labour leaders rejected this offer and called for more substantial concessions. Shortly thereafter, reports on these developments emerged, and the presidency issued a statement announcing the additional ₦10,000 increment.
In their statement, the presidency declared, “The Federal Government, on Sunday, October 1, 2023, held discussions with the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) to address the dispute arising from the removal of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).”
The key points noted during the meeting were as follows:
i) The Federal Government has announced a provisional wage award of ₦35,000 for all treasury-paid federal government workers for six months, following further consultations with President Bola Tinubu.
ii) The Federal Government is committed to expediting the provision of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses to alleviate public transportation challenges resulting from the removal of PMS subsidy.
iii) The Federal Government is dedicated to providing funds for micro and small-scale enterprises.
In light of the discussions held during the meeting, the following were the major highlights:
The Federal Government appealed to the Labour unions not to embark on a strike action, emphasising that the issues in dispute can only be resolved when workers are actively engaged in their duties. Meanwhile, the Labour Unions advocated for a more substantial wage increase and proposed the formation of a sub-committee to work out the implementation details of all items concerning government interventions to mitigate the impact of fuel subsidy removal.
Femi Gbajabiamila, the Chief of Staff making the announcement.