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Minimum Wage: Labour Carpets Govs On Consequential Adjustment
The organised labour, yesterday, said the revenue of state governments would determine the consequential adjustment on the new minimum wage it would accept.
Reacting to a comment by the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF), Dr Fayemi Kayode, that the agreement between and organised labour on consequential adjustment of the N30,000 minimum wage was not binding on state governments, the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC), Comrade Simon Achaver, said labour would rely on the revenue accrued to each state in determining what it should pay.
It would be recalled that the NGF Chairman and Governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi, had said last Monday while briefing reporters at the end of a meeting of the 36 state governors at Transcorp Hilton Hotel, in Abuja, that agreement and directive on consequential adjustment apply only to federal workers.
“I am sure you know the FEC does not determine what happens in the states, the states have their own state executive councils and that is the highest decision-making body at the state level.
“The forum (NGF) as the representative body of the states followed what happened in the negotiations that transpired. As far as we are concerned, the best that the forum can do is stick to what has been agreed with states.”
Fayemi said while the state governments have accepted the N30,000 baseline, each would negotiate with its workers on the implementation and the consequential adjustments.
“States were part of the tripartite negotiation and agreed to N30,000 minimum wage. But states also know there will be consequential adjustments. That would be determined by what happened on a state-by-state basis because there are different numbers of workers at the state level, there are different issues at the state level.
“Every state has its own trade union, with a negotiating committee and they would undertake this discussion with their state government. That is simply what we have said”, Fayemi added.
However, in a chat with newsmen, yesterday, Achaver said the revenue of a state would be the main factor on the rate of consequential adjustment it agrees with such a state.
“Since it is a law, the state government must pay, first and foremost, they should declare how much they are collecting from their respective state revenue then we will know if it is commensurable to pay minimum wage,” he said.
He added that “once they (state governments) disclose their revenue, they can negotiate and that should be supervised by the national officers so that we can avoid situations where some labour leaders will be in the hands of the state government”.
According to him, “a meeting of National Joint Council 1, 2, 3 will hold on November 5, and we will address the joint councils at the various states. We will give them templates that will guide them on the implementation.
“We are ready for shut down, if any of the agreements is breached,” he warned.
Achaver’s position was reiterated by the General Secretary of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Emma Ugboaja.
In an interview with newsmen, yesterday, Ugboaja said no state could discard the fact that a minimum wage of N30,000 would be at the centre of every negotiation.
“Everybody will negotiate differently based on the state economy but what is sacrosanct is the minimum wage of N30,000 and how that will be adjusted across the board is the function of collective bargaining between the workforce and government,” he said.
President Muhammadu Buhari signed the new minimum wage bill into law on April 18.
But its implementation had been stalled over salary adjustments and disagreement between the labour unions and government representatives.
Specifically, the problem centred around the issue of relativity and consequential adjustments of salaries for various categories of workers.
The Federal Government then argued that the minimum wage was for junior-level workers (levels 1 to 7) and that salary increase for other categories of worker would have to be negotiated.
On May 14, the Federal Government inaugurated the relativity and consequential adjustment committee, which set up a technical subcommittee to work out a template for the adjustment of salaries of public service employees in line with the minimum wage law.
The controversy was resolved between both parties on October 18, following which FEC approved the implementation.
The Labour Minister, Dr Chris Ngige, announced details of the agreement to journalists.
“For COMESS wage structure, Grade Level 7 gets 23 per cent, Salary Grade Level 8 gets 20 per cent, Salary Grade Level 9 gets 19 per cent, Salary Grade Level 10 -14 gets 16 per cent while Salary Grade Level 15-17 gets 14 per cent,” he said.
“For those on the second category of wages structure, CONHES, CONRRISE, CONTISS etc, Level 7 gets 22.2 per cent, Level 8-14 gets 16 per cent, Level 15-17 gets 10.5 per cent,” he added.
Speaking on behalf of the union, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress after reaching the agreement, Ayuba Wabba, said both parties participated in the process and made input.
“We want our workers to be committed and increase productivity. The guideline will be transmitted to all state councils and they will work in harmony as well as TUC and NLC will work together,” he said.
The Federal Government and labour on October 18 announced an agreement on the implementation of the new wage.
The agreement over consequential adjustments averted a strike that labour had threatened to call should government further delay the take-off of the new minimum wage.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) at its meeting, last Wednesday, presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo approved the agreement and set dates for the take-off of the new wage and payment of the arrears.
FEC directed that the payment of the new salary structure should take effect from April 18 and the arrears cleared by December 31.
Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, had lauded the courage and commitment of troops of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) to the ongoing counter-insurgency operations in North East Nigeria.
Abubakar gave the commendation during a morale-boosting visit to the Air Component of Operation HADIN KAI in Maiduguri, Borno.
This is contained in a statement by the Director, Public Relations and Information, NAF, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, yesterday, in Abuja.
The CAS said their sacrifices were etched in the history of the nation, and in the hearts of millions of Nigerians who sleep safer because of the troops’ vigilance.
He emphasised that their bravery and resilience in the face of adversity have not gone unnoticed, saying his visit underscored the vital role airpower plays in neutralising threats and protecting communities.
Abubakar pledged continued investment in cutting-edge technology to empower frontline units.
According to him, the NAF remains steadfast in its mission, guided by leadership, strengthened by unity, and driven by the selfless service of its personnel.
The visit comes at a critical moment, reinforcing the importance of public support for military operations and spotlighting the human element at the heart of national defence.
Nigeria’s soft drinks and beverage market continues to show strong growth potential, making it the leading consumer of soft drinks in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association.
A statement by the VDMA disclosed during a press conference held in Lagos ahead of drinktec 2025, that Nigeria consumed over 53 billion litres of soft drinks in 2024, placing it well ahead of other African countries such as Ghana and South Africa.
Despite challenges such as inflation and a weakening naira, Nigeria’s growing population, rising urbanisation, and expanding middle class are key factors driving demand in the beverage sector.
Bottled water led the segment with 48.7 billion litres sold in 2024, a figure projected to rise by 27% to 62 billion litres by 2028.
Carbonated soft drinks followed with 3.4 billion litres, expected to reach 4.4 billion litres by 2028, while energy drinks are forecasted to grow by 30% over the same period. Juices, though relatively small, are also on an upward trajectory.
“The Nigerian beverage market is expanding quickly due to increasing accessibility and affordability,” VDMA stated, citing data from Euromonitor International.
Set to take place in Munich from 15 to 19 September 2025, drinktec is the world’s leading trade fair for the beverage and liquid food industry.
VDMA, a key exhibitor and technical partner for the event, revealed that Nigerian participation is expected to be strong, especially as the country anticipates economic recovery.
Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has condemned the recent ban placed on a song by Nigerian musician, Eedris Abdulkareem, describing the development as a return to the culture of censorship and a threat to the right to free expression.
Abdulkareem had waxed a song titled “Tell Your Papa” which criticized President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
In a statement issued from New York University, Abu Dhabi, yesterday, Soyinka criticised the action and its wider implications, saying it echoed past attempts to stifle artistic and socio-political commentary in Nigeria.
“Courtesy of an artist operating in a different genre – the cartoon – who sent me his recent graphic comment on the event, I learnt recently of a return to the culture of censorship with the banning of the product of a music artist, Eedris Abdulkareem,” Soyinka said in the piece posted on PM news.
He expressed irony in suggesting that the ban did not go far enough, stating, “It is not only the allegedly offensive record that should be banned – the musician himself should be proscribed. Next, PMAN, or whatever musical association of which Abdulkareem is member, should also go under the hammer.”
Soyinka noted that he had not listened to the banned song but stressed that the issue transcends content and concerns a fundamental democratic principle.
“It cannot be flouted. That, surely is basic. This is why I feel that we should look on the bright side of any picture and thus recommend the Aleshinloye cartoon – and others in allied vein – as an easy-to-apprehend, easy-to-digest summation of the wisdom of attempting to stifle unpalatable works of art or socio-political commentary,” he said.
He also pointed out the irony that censorship often benefits the targeted artist.
The ban is a boost to the artist’s nest egg, thanks to free governmental promotion. Mr. Abdulkareem must be currently warbling his merry way all the way to the bank. I envy him,” he added.
The literary icon warned that such censorship was not only counterproductive but also dangerous to democratic development.
“We have been through this before, over and over again, ad nauseum. We know where it all ends. It is boring, time-wasting, diversionary but most essential of all, subversive of all seizures of the fundamental right of free expression,” Soyinka said.
He warned that the ban creates “a permissive atmosphere of trickle-down power,” where state authorities feel emboldened to clamp down on dissent.
Soyinka’s statement also touched on broader issues of impunity and mob violence in Nigeria, lamenting the recent lynching of 19 youths in Edo State.
“My heart goes out to friends, colleagues and families of victims and traumatised survivors of this senseless slaughter. Our thirst for justice must remain unslaked,” he said.
Referencing the 2022 killing of Deborah Samuel in Sokoto, Soyinka criticised the culture of impunity, saying, “Identified killers were set free to gloat, and paste their photos on the Social Media… in full daylight glare, in the presence of both citizen voyeurs and security forces.”
He called for accountability, warning that “as long as the culture of impunity is given the sheerest strain of legitimacy in any given cause, such gruesome assaults on our common humanity will continue to prevail.”
Soyinka concluded by urging the relevant regulatory body to reverse what he described as a “petulant irrationality,” warning that any government that only tolerates praise-singers “has already commenced a downhill slide into the abyss.”