Labour Demands Action on Wage Award Before Aug. 11

The Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC), Trade Union Side, has urged the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, to convene an urgent meeting over the delayed payment of two months’ wage award and the implementation of the 40 per cent peculiar allowance for federal workers.

In a letter signed by the council’s National Secretary, Gbenga Olowoyo, on behalf of the National Chairman, Benjamin Yanto, the union requested that the meeting be held on or before Aug. 11, warning that continued delays could trigger industrial unrest across the federal public service.

The council expressed dissatisfaction that two previous letters sent to the minister on May 5 and July 9, 2026, had not received any response.

According to the union, the proposed meeting is aimed at finding an amicable resolution to the outstanding welfare issues and preventing what it described as a brewing industrial crisis.

The JNPSNC said its demands include the implementation of the 40 per cent peculiar allowance approved by the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC), as well as the payment of the outstanding wage award for March and April 2026.

It noted that the allowance was approved through an NSIWC circular, signed by the commission’s Executive Chairman, Eyo Nta, with effect from May 1, 2026, but has yet to be implemented.

The union also maintained that the wage award arrears for March and April should have been paid alongside workers’ salaries for those months.

The council said the finance ministry’s silence had heightened concerns among federal workers, alleging that the delay was undermining efforts to ensure the implementation of approved welfare measures.

It warned that failure to address the issues promptly could force workers to embark on industrial action, stressing that the latest request for dialogue was intended to avert such a development.

The JNPSNC is the umbrella negotiating body representing unions across the federal public service on matters relating to salaries, allowances and conditions of service.

The demand comes amid renewed calls on the Federal Government to fulfil agreements reached with organised labour following the 2023 fuel subsidy removal, including the payment of wage awards and implementation of welfare measures designed to cushion the impact of rising living costs on workers.