By Chinedu Echianu
The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has rejected Federal Government’s proposed ₦70,000 transportation allowance to Nigerian workers, a deal reached with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), but rather insisting on an immediate salary increase and the full implementation of the outstanding agreement with the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU).
In a statement jointly signed by TUC President, Comrade Festus Osifo and its Secretary-General, Comrade Nuhu Toro, the Congress said temporary wage awards were neither sustainable nor far-reaching enough to address the economic hardship facing Nigerian workers, stressing that salary increases remained the most reliable means of providing lasting relief, adding that the TUC had communicated its position to the Federal Government in a letter dated October 8, following a meeting of its National Administrative Council in Abuja.
Osifo argued that the government did not need to negotiate a new national minimum wage before increasing workers’ salaries, noting that there was no law prescribing a maximum wage in the country.
He said the Federal Government could raise the pay of the lowest-paid worker beyond the current ₦70,000 minimum wage and apply the appropriate consequential adjustments to other salary levels.
The TUC rejected the proposed transportation allowance, citing the Federal Government’s failure to fully implement the ₦40,000 monthly wage award agreed with organised labour in October 2023.
According to the Congress, some workers are still owed one or two months of the previous award, while others never received any payment. It also alleged that payments to some beneficiaries were irregular, with delays of one or two months between instalments.
The Congress further claimed that more than 80 per cent of states and the informal sector did not implement any form of wage award. It maintained that negotiations for a new national minimum wage should not be used as an excuse to delay an urgent salary increase for workers.
Beyond salary adjustments, the TUC called on governments at all levels to introduce measurable interventions to reduce the cost of food, transportation, healthcare and other essential services.
It also demanded timely payment of salaries and pensions, protection of existing jobs, an end to exploitative labour practices and measures to revive the productive sector to generate decent employment.
On the prolonged dispute involving JOHESU, the Congress accused the Federal Government of failing to implement the agreement reached with the health workers’ unions to resolve their industrial action.
The TUC said the agreement, reached after a series of conciliation meetings involving the Ministries of Labour and Employment and Health, provided for the resolution of outstanding issues relating to the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS).
It said JOHESU suspended its industrial action in good faith after the agreement was signed, but the government had yet to implement the agreed salary adjustment seven months later.
The Congress described the delay as a breach of good faith that undermined collective bargaining and eroded workers’ confidence in agreements negotiated with the government.
It therefore demanded the immediate implementation of the CONHESS adjustment, a clear timetable for resolving outstanding issues and the provision of necessary budgetary allocations.
The TUC said it would stand with affected unions and pursue all lawful means to compel the government to honour its commitments.
