The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has pledged to fiercely oppose any move by the National Assembly to remove labour matters, including the national minimum wage, from the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent list, which would allow individual states to set their own workers’ wages.
Speaking on Friday at the National Administrative Council (NAC) meeting of the Central Working Committee in Abeokuta, Ogun State, NLC President Joe Ajaero described the proposal as an “exercise in futility” that undermines global labour standards. He cited International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions, which treat the minimum wage as a national issue, recognizing countries as single entities rather than sub-national units like states.
Ajaero accused lawmakers of attempting to dismantle the national minimum wage structure and shift labour responsibilities, including the establishment of state industrial courts to handle wage disputes, to individual states. He argued that such a move violates ILO principles and would create inconsistencies in labour standards across Nigeria.
“The National Assembly should not pursue this plan unless they are also willing to let their states determine their own wages,” Ajaero stated, emphasizing the NLC’s resolve to protect the centralized wage system. The NLC’s stance highlights growing tensions between labour unions and lawmakers over the proposed restructuring of Nigeria’s labour framework.
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