“We need at least ₦500,000” — NLC, TUC return to minimum wage negotiation with FG

Precious Omolu 16:30 - 07 August 2026

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NLC National Deputy President Comrade Audu Titus Amba called for a new ₦500,000 minimum wage while representing union leadership at the Nigeria Rights of Workers Summit in Birnin Kebbi

NLC and TUC demand a new ₦500,000 minimum wage from the Federal Government, saying the current wage is no longer enough to meet Nigerian workers’ needs.

NLC and TUC want ₦500,000 as Nigeria’s new minimum wage.
NLC Deputy President Audu Titus Amba said the previous wage review period expired in July.
Labour says anything below ₦500,000 may not adequately address workers’ current economic challenges.
Kebbi Governor Nasir Idris promised to champion the demand at a Nigeria Governors’ Forum meeting.

Nigerian workers may soon be asking for a much bigger pay rise as the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have demanded a new minimum wage of ₦500,000.

The unions say the current economic situation has made the existing wage arrangement increasingly difficult for workers to cope with.

The demand was made by the National Deputy President of the NLC and President of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Audu Titus Amba, during the Nigeria Rights of Workers Summit held in Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State.

Amba, who represented NLC President Joe Ajaero at the event, said the period agreed for the last minimum wage review had expired in July.

According to him, Labour is now ready to return to the negotiation table with the Federal Government.

NLC President Joe Ajaero mandated union representatives to re-enter negotiations with the Federal Government after the previous wage review timeline expired.

“So we want to enter into another negotiation with the federal government to request at least N500,000 to be paid to the nation’s workers as the new minimum wage,” Amba said.

The Labour leader said anything below ₦500,000 would not adequately address the financial pressure facing Nigerian workers, especially with the rising cost of living and other economic challenges.

He explained that the unions are not looking for a confrontation with the Federal Government but want a fresh negotiation that will take the current reality of workers into account.

The call comes after the ₦70,000 minimum wage agreement between the Federal Government and organised labour, which was part of the previous wage review arrangement.

Amba said the unions believe there is now a need to review the wage again because of the hardship being experienced by workers across the country.

Kebbi State Governor Nasir Idris addressed summit delegates and pledged to present organized labour’s new wage demands to the Nigeria Governors’ Forum

The summit, which was attended by about 1,000 delegates, focused on issues affecting Nigerian workers and trade union leadership, as well as possible ways to improve the welfare of workers.

Speaking at the event, Kebbi State Governor Nasir Idris said his administration was the first among state governments to implement a ₦75,000 minimum wage for its workers.

Governor Idris also promised to take up the unions' new demand at a meeting of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum.

The latest demand means another major minimum wage negotiation could be on the horizon, with organised labour pushing for ₦500,000 as the amount it believes Nigerian workers now need to cope with the country’s economic realities.