Months after protests by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and negotiations with the Federal Government over the minimum wage, a new minimum wage of N70,000 was agreed upon on July 18, 2024, by the Federal Government and labour unions.
The initial wage was N30,000, sparking agitation from labour unions as the cost of living rose and inflation increased.
However, despite the implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage on July 29, several states have yet to do so.
With the October deadline approaching, the Organised Labour has given all governors an ultimatum to implement the new wage or face industrial unrest.
In July 2024, President Bola Tinubu approved an increase in the minimum wage for Nigerian workers from N30,000 to N70,000.
However, the implementation across states has been gradual, with some still not adopting the new minimum wage.
While several states have pledged to meet the N70,000 minimum wage, others have gone further, committing to pay amounts higher than the federal mandate.
However, some states have started making announcements regarding the minimum wage to beat the Labour union deadline of October 31. Some states like Rivers and Lagos States have announced N85,000 respectively making it the highest minimum wage in the country above the N70,000 naira minimum wage benchmark.
It is noteworthy that Edo State started paying its workers N70,000 in June, two months before it was signed into law, while Adamawa State started implementing the N70,000 new minimum wage in August.
States where wages have been announced are as follows:
Lagos
Among states that have displayed preparedness to pay the new wage is Lagos.
Recall that Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu on October 16, said his administration was ready to pay N85,000 as minimum wage.
The decision was said to have been made unilaterally without negotiations or agreement with Organised Labour in the state.
Meanwhile, Sanwo-Olu, in an interview, said: “I just want to let you know that the minimum wage in Lagos as we discussed with our workers’ union is N85,000 as of today. It is not a competition. I’m not saying that we are paying more than other states. It is a function of affordability and the function of capacity. I would like to come back in January to say that I have been able to increase the minimum wage of Lagos’ public workers to N100,000, not because I want to make anybody look bad, but because I want my people to have a living wage.”
However, concerns from workers in the state have been raised towards the Governor’s announcement as it fell short of economic realities.
Ondo
Like its counterpart in Lagos state, the Ondo State government have agreed to pay the N73,000 minimum wage to its workers. This is slightly above the N70,000 minimum wage benchmark by the federal government. However, the announcement was said to have been similar to that of Lagos state without negotiations and agreement with the Labour Unions.
Kogi
On October 7, Governor Ahmed Ododo of Kogi State approved N72,500 as minimum wage for the least-paid workers. The N72,500 wage is N2,500 higher than the amount approved in July. Also, Governor Ododo has approved tax relief for all workers in the state.
Gombe
In Gombe State, Governor Inuwa Yahaya approved N71,500 as minimum wage for civil servants effective October 2024.
Chairman of NLC in the state, Yusuf Aish-Bello, disclosed this after the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, on the new national minimum wage in Gombe on October 14, 2024.
Edo
Edo State led first with the payment of N70,000 minimum wage in June 2024. This was before the Federal Government agreed to pay N70,000 following the economic hardship in the country.
Adamawa
The Adamawa State government, like its counterpart in Edo State, pays the new minimum wage. The payment of the N70, 000 minimum wage began in August 2024 to all categories of civil servants. It was however gathered that the implementation of the new wage at the Local government councils is expected to commence this October.
Rivers
In Rivers State, Governor Siminalayi Fubara approved the payment of N85,000.00 to civil servants in the state, starting from November 2024. However, reports said an agreement was reached during a closed-door meeting presided over by the governor and attended by representatives of Organised Labour under the auspices of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council.
Ebonyi
In September, Ebonyi State Governor, Francis Nwifuru, approved the payment of N70,000 minimum wage to civil servants under the employ of the state.
Ogun
In Ogun State, Governor Dapo Abiodun agreed to pay N77,000 to the lowest worker. He said payment would begin in October. The amount is also N7,000 above the baseline of N70,000 at the federal level. Nevertheless, it was noted that the decision to peg it at N77,000 was after a meeting with the leadership of the Organized Labour in Ogun State.
Jigawa
On October 26, Gov. Umar Namadi of Jigawa approved the payment of the new N70,000 National Minimum Wage to workers in the state.
Mr Sagir Musa, the Commissioner for Information, Youths, Sports and Culture, disclosed this to newsmen in Dutse on Saturday.
He said that Namadi made the pronouncement on Friday after receiving a report from the state’s Minimum Wage Committee led by Muhammad Dagacire, the Head of Service.
Enugu
Enugu Governor Peter Mbah has approved N80,000 as the minimum wage for workers with immediate effect.
Mbah announced this at the Government House after receiving the report of the committee set up to look into the minimum wage issues.
“Today, I’m happy to announce a new minimum wage for workers in Enugu state, reflecting our fidelity to their welfare in regard to which we’ve been resolutely committed. “We’ve approved the sum of 80,000 Naira to take immediate effect as the new minimum wage in Enugu State,” he said.
Akwa Ibom
Akwa Ibom State Governor, Umo Eno, on Wednesday, announced a new minimum wage package of N80,000 for public civil servants in the state.
Eno also constituted an Implementation committee with a mandate to deliver its report within one month.
Niger
In Niger State, Governor Mohammed Bago has approved N80,000 as the new minimum wage for workers in the State. The minimum wage, however, would take effect from November 2024.
Disclosing this to newsmen after an extensive meeting between the State Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress(NLC), the Governor said that the State would be able to sustain N80,000 minimum wage for its workers.
Delta
The Delta state government officially announced that it would start paying a minimum wage of N77,500 to its workers from the end of this month. The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr. Kingsley Emu, announced this at a meeting of the committee on the new minimum wage with the leadership of the state’s organized labour, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC), and the Joint Negotiating Council (JNC).
Kebbi
Governor Nasir Idris on Wednesday, October 23 approved 75,000 naira as a new minimum wage for the state civil servants. Confirming the development, the chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress in the state, Murtala Usman, stated this while speaking with correspondents.
Kwara
The Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has approved the payment of the new minimum wage of N70,000 to workers in the state from October.
The approval is contained in a statement issued on Saturday by the state’s Commissioner for Finance, Hauwa Nuru.
The statement said the approved wage will be implemented across the Kwara State public service, with effect from October 2024.
Abia
The Abia State Government has announced that it will begin payment of the new N70,000 minimum wage to its workers in October.
This was disclosed during a briefing by the Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, at the end of the State Executive Council (SEC) meeting chaired by Governor Alex Otti.
Bayelsa
Bayelsa Governor Douye Diri has approved N80,000 as a new minimum wage for workers in the civil service with effect from November 1, 2024.
Diri also approved an increase in the monthly pension of retired workers as well as N7 billion to reduce outstanding gratuity liabilities.
His spokesperson, Daniel Alabrah, who disclosed these in a statement, said the Bayelsa Governor acknowledged the challenging times workers face in the state due to the rise in the cost of living.
With eighteen states agreeing to implement the minimum wage benchmark of N70,000, only twelve states increased their minimum wage slightly above the benchmark with River’s and Lagos States paying N85,000 naira minimum wage as the highest in the country.
States Yet to Implement Minimum Wage
States like Zamfara have yet to announce the implementation of the minimum wage adjustment while Osun State and Benue State have also expressed readiness to adopt the new minimum wage.
Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, announced that the state will commence payment of the new minimum wage starting October 2024 and Katsina State Governor, Dikko Radda, said his administration is committed to implementing the new minimum wage.
Meanwhile, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State declared that his administration would commence the payment of the minimum wage once the issue of consequential salary adjustment has been addressed.
The other six states yet to give any sign of implementing the minimum wage before the NLC deadline are Bauchi, Ekiti, Imo, Kano, Kaduna, and Nassarawa.
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