The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and unions are not letting up in the spate of threatened, aborted or executed nationwide strikes since the commencement of 2024. The strikes often targeted forcing the federal government’s hand in agreeing to a new minimum wage for workers considering the current state of the economy and reviewing the increase in the price of electricity for some consumers.
Several reports indicate that the NLC and the TUC have been in negotiation with the federal government over a new minimum wage since the government policies announced in 2023 by President Bola Tinubu spiralled into exponential increase in the cost of goods and services.
In his inauguration speech on 29 May 2023, President Tinubu announced the removal of the petrol subsidy, leading to hardships of far-reaching consequences including high percentage increase in exchange rates and double-digit inflation rate at 33.69% as of May 2024.
It may be recalled that after the president’s inaugural address, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announced a new price regime ranging from N537 to N600 per litre for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) popularly known as petrol.
Hence, the NLC on 26 July 2023 gave a nationwide strike notice beginning on 2 August 2023, to protest the removal of fuel subsidy however, aborted the action at the last minute after a series of meetings with the federal government. While negotiations with the labour leaders were ongoing, the federal government approached the National Industrial Court in Abuja and, on 5 June 2023, to obtain a court order halt the strike.
Labour leaders called off the strike in compliance with the court order with affirmation by the federal government to put in place immediate and termed palliative measures. Notably, on 5 September, 2023 again announced it would embark on a two-day nationwide warning strike from over the hardship faced by the masses due to the removal of fuel subsidy. Later declaring an indefinite strike regarding the matter on 3 October 2023 however, suspended the planned strike after a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by the representatives of the labour unions and the federal government.
According to the MoU, the unions would suspend their strike by 30 days, with parties to the agreement committing “to henceforth abide by the dictates of Social dialogue in all our future engagements.”
The MoU stipulated that the document shall be filed in “relevant court of competent jurisdiction within one (1) week as consent judgment by the Federal Government.”
The document was signed by NLC representatives—its president, Joe Ajaero, and the secretary, Emmanuel Ughoaja—as well as TUC representatives—its president, Festus Usifo, and general secretary, Emmanuel Ugboaja.
Officials who signed the agreement on behalf of the federal government are the Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Bako Lalong; the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha; and the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris.
The MoU contains terms and conditions that both sides had previously agreed upon. Among the terms, the agreement includes a wage award of N35,000 to all federal government employees starting from September, until a new national minimum wage is officially enacted. Another stipulation is the inauguration of a minimum wage committee within one month from the date of the agreement.
Furthermore, the federal government agreed to suspend the collection of Value Added Tax (VAT) on diesel for six months, beginning in October 2023. After the implementations were not met, the organised labour in February issued a two-week ultimatum to the federal government to commence the implementation of policies that will reduce the impact of the government’s economic policies on citizens.
Consequently, on Sunday, 02 June 2024, the NLC and Trade Union Congress (TUC) mentioned the possibility of proceeding on a planned strike angling total shutdown of offices, banks, airports, and other key places in the country today, 3 June amid economic uncertainties.
Because the Sunday meeting between representatives of the federal government, leadership of the National Assembly and officials of the NLC and TUC over the proposed national minimum wage ended in deadlock. The meeting which began around 5:50 p.m. and ended at 8:45 p.m. was held behind closed-door at the National Assembly complex, Abuja.
Recall on Friday, 31 May the NLC and TUC announced the possibility of a total indefinite strike. The unions expect numerous other workers’ unions, including those of doctors, university lecturers, airport workers, and electricity workers to join in. Amid the uncertainties, the nation may experience widespread power outages, fuel shortages, and transportation disruptions as essential services will be disrupted.
In a notice issued on Saturday, 01 June regarding the indefinite nationwide strike, the general secretary of NLC, Emmanuel Ugboaja, urged all affiliated bodies to mobilize their members for full compliance with the industrial action directive. Ugboaja emphasised the importance of ensuring a comprehensive closure of all workplaces, noting that the success of the strike hinged on the collective determination and resolve of their members.
