The Nigerian Government has announced that a revised minimum wage will be implemented starting April 1, 2024.
Idris Mohammed, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, revealed in Abuja that the existing minimum wage of N30,000 is slated to end by March 2024.
Responding to queries about the 2024–2026 Fiscal Framework budget, Mohammed clarified that the Federal Government’s proposed expenditure included N24.66tn for salaries in 2024, 2025, and 2026.
Recall that following the removal of fuel subsidy by President Bola Tinubu on May 29, 2023, the Federal Government agreed to pay N35,000 to each of its workers to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal.
However, the organised Labour insisted that the N35,000 wage award was a temporary measure, adding that the minimum wage should be reviewed in 2024.
- The Nigeria Labour Congress National President, Joe Ajaero, recently said, “It is open knowledge that the review of the national minimum wage is a matter of the law which is expected to happen in 2024.”
What the FG is Saying
Meanwhile, Mohammed, emphasized that the enhanced take-home pay aimed to substitute the temporary palliative measure implemented by the government to alleviate the challenges resulting from the removal of the fuel subsidy.
He said,
- “Certainly, there Is a new wage regime that will come in on April 1, 2024. That is why these palliatives were targeted so they would cushion economic hardship before then. In our negotiation with Labour, we said that the wage issue was not something one could just fix. A committee that will also involve Labour itself will work on it.
- “The committee is being constituted and we are talking to Labour about it. And by the time this current wage regime expires by the end of March, we will expect that a new wage will begin by April.
- “It is in this wage regime that we will now have a proper salary structure for workers across the length and breadth of Nigeria. We expect that the private sector and state governors will also do the same.”
Moreover, in the 2024–2026 Fiscal Framework analysis, it is revealed that the Federal Government aims to dedicate 29.18% of its overall budgets for 2024, 2025, and 2026 to cover expenditures related to salaries, overheads, and pensions.
