NLC gives FG two-week ultimatum to cut petrol price, renegotiate minimum wage

 The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has given the federal
government a two-week ultimatum to cut petrol price and commence renegotiation
of the national minimum wage.

 

According to NAN, the ultimatum is contained in a communiqué
signed by Joe Ajaero, NLC president, after a joint meeting of the national
executive council (NEC) and central working committee (CWC) on Thursday in
Abuja.

The meeting deliberated on the state of the nation, economic
hardship, rising cost of living and what the NLC described as existential
threats confronting workers and the masses.

In the communiqué, Ajaero said the federal government should
reduce petrol prices to the level prevailing when the current national minimum
wage was signed into law in 2024.

“The joint meeting issues a two-week ultimatum to the
federal government, beginning from Friday, Oct. 9, 2026,” the communiqué reads.

“Within this period, government is expected to take measures
to reduce the price of petrol across the nation and commence the process of
renegotiating a new national minimum wage.

“Failure of which the NLC will be compelled to take remedial
steps as would be directed by the relevant organs.”

Ajaero said the current national minimum wage had been
eroded by the depreciation of the naira and rising cost of living, leaving
workers unable to afford basic necessities.

He demanded that the federal government would commence
renegotiation of the minimum wage before the end of October, saying workers
deserved a living wage that reflected prevailing economic realities.

While calling for an immediate reduction in the price of
petrol, Ajaero said that high petrol price had driven up transportation fares
and the cost of food and other essential goods, worsening the hardship facing
Nigerians.

He further demanded implementation of the terms of
settlement reached with the Joint Health Sector Unions and Assembly of
Healthcare Professionals (JOHESU) on February 5, 2026.

The NLC president also demanded implementation of the
outstanding demands of the joint public sector negotiating council (JPSNC), as
well as agreed tax relief measures.

He called for immediate payment of wage awards to workers to
cushion the impact of rising living costs, saying the government must provide
relief to workers facing worsening economic pressure.

Ajaero urged workers and NLC affiliates to remain organised
and prepared to respond if the federal government failed to meet the demands
within the stipulated period.

He reaffirmed the NLC’s commitment to defending workers’
interests, urging affiliates and progressive allies to remain on high alert.

BACK STORY

The development follows the conclusion of the three-day
warning strike embarked on by public servants under the aegis of the Joint
National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC) over the failure of the
federal government to cut the petrol price to N500 per litre and commence fresh
negotiation on new national minimum wage.

President Bola Tinubu signed the current N70,000 National
Minimum Wage Act into law on July 29, 2024.

At the time, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited
(NNPCL) sold petrol at N580 per litre at its retail stations, while the
National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) put the national average price of the
commodity at N770.54 per litre.

In response to public outcry over high cost of petrol, Taiwo
Oyedele, minister of finance, said the federal government is negotiating a
price ceiling of N1,350 per litre on the ex-gantry or landing cost of petrol.

Speaking on Thursday at a press conference on petrol subsidy
in Abuja, Oyedele said the plan aims to stabilise pump prices.

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