The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has dismissed claims that it negotiated the N40,000 consequential salary adjustment approved for federal workers following the implementation of the 2024 national minimum wage, insisting that the responsibility rested with public sector trade unions.
The Congress described the claims as misleading, saying they misrepresented the established collective bargaining structure governing wage negotiations in the country.
This position was contained in a press statement dated November 8, 2026, and signed by the Acting General Secretary of the NLC, Comrade Benson Upah.
The labour organisation explained that its role in the national minimum wage process was to negotiate the minimum wage, which establishes the lowest amount an employer is legally required to pay a worker.
It clarified that consequential adjustments, which involve reviewing existing salary structures to reflect an increase in the minimum wage, are negotiated separately by relevant trade unions and employers within their respective sectors.
According to the NLC, negotiations involving federal government employees are conducted by the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (JPSNC), comprising government representatives and eight trade unions.
It added that similar arrangements exist at the state level, where corresponding negotiating councils engage state governments, while industrial unions negotiate with employers’ associations in the private sector.
The Congress cited the Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers (AFBTE) and the National Union of Food, Beverages and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE) as examples of organisations responsible for negotiating wage implementation within their industry.
While acknowledging its representation of workers across public and private sectors, the NLC maintained that it does not directly negotiate consequential adjustments on behalf of workers in the various sectors.
It specifically rejected suggestions that it secured the N40,000 across-the-board adjustment for federal employees, maintaining that the outcome was negotiated by the leadership of public sector unions.
The statement further noted that the Congress had never directly negotiated consequential adjustments with either the Federal Government or private sector employers since the introduction of the national minimum wage system.
It identified the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council as the body responsible for such negotiations in the public sector, while Joint Negotiating Industrial Councils (JNICs) perform similar functions across private sector industries.
The NLC also accused unnamed individuals of attempting to create divisions within the labour movement by spreading misinformation and shifting responsibility for the outcome of the salary adjustment.
It warned that such claims could undermine workers’ unity, particularly as preparations begin for negotiations on a new national minimum wage.
The Congress urged Nigerian workers to disregard what it described as propaganda and remain committed to protecting the interests of the working class.
It also called on stakeholders to collaborate with the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in strengthening accountability within the country’s wage negotiation framework.
The labour body reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that the next national minimum wage negotiations produce an outcome that improves the welfare of Nigerian workers and the wider population.
