The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) says it will launch a new campaign to secure a cost of living allowance for Nigerian workers, citing worsening economic hardship and the erosion of the recently agreed N70,000 minimum wage.
NLC President, Joe Ajaero criticized the federal government’s approach to wage negotiations, stating that the minimum wage deal fell short of addressing the real cost of living.
“When we negotiated the new wage, our goal was a living wage benchmarked to inflation,” Ajaero said. “We presented data on transport, food, housing, and other essentials, but the government team came unprepared and failed to respond meaningfully.”
He revealed that labour reluctantly accepted the N70,000 minimum wage following strikes and assurances from President Bola Tinubu’s administration that pump prices would remain stable, an agreement he claims was broken.
“Today, the value of that N70,000 has been eroded by inflation,” Ajaero lamented. “Even the temporary wage award granted as relief has stopped. We now have every justification to demand a cost of living allowance.”
