New Year: Labour Demands Urgent Wage Review In 2026

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called for an urgent nationwide wage review, warning that workers’ incomes have been eroded by rising inflation and worsening living conditions. The Congress insists that salaries must guarantee “life, not mere survival” as the country enters 2026.

In a New Year message to workers and the wider public, the NLC stated that the economic pressures of 2025 had deepened hardship for ordinary Nigerians, but emphasised that organised labour remained resolute in its pursuit of social justice, equitable wealth distribution, and accountable governance.

The statement, signed by NLC president, Comrade Joe Ajaero, framed 2026 as a decisive year for engagement with government and renewed mobilisation by workers.

The congress stated that it was prepared to engage with the federal government following assurances of “more faithful and meaningful engagement” by President Bola Tinubu, adding that such commitments were secured through sustained pressure from labour.

It noted that dialogue would be approached deeply, consciously, and patriotically, while making clear that labour would support only governments and political actors with demonstrable, pro-people policies.

The NLC warned that workers and citizens must remain vigilant, pledging to organise and mobilise across all tiers of government to ensure accountability. It rejected what it described as mercantilist politics driven by empty promises and policies that undermine living standards, arguing that national cohesion could only be achieved when economic burdens are fairly shared and public trust restored.

Central to labour’s demands is a comprehensive wage review to reflect current economic realities. The congress stated that escalating inflation had rendered existing wages untenable, directly contradicting official commitments to a living wage. It vowed to pursue improved pay and conditions using all legitimate means available to organised labour.

The statement reads in parts, “As we stand on the threshold of 2026, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) extends strong solidarity and firm fraternal greetings to every toiling hand and every citizen burdened by the weight of our current socioeconomic system. The past year was no doubt challenging, as well as exposing our vulnerabilities. But they did little to dip our focus or resolve in our strive for national cohesion through equitable redistribution of wealth and social justice.”

Furthermore, given the escalating inflation and suffering, we demand an urgent wage review as a worker’s income must guarantee life, not mere survival, in furtherance of Mr President’s promise to pay living wages. We shall pursue this with every legitimate means at our disposal.”

“Security remains a fundamental right, and the primary duty of any state is to guarantee it and the safety of property. We acknowledge recent successes. We will continue to urge the state to build on the ongoing successes, as the people are deserving of peace and security wherever they live. The government should not look back.

Let us therefore move forward, more united, more organised, and more resolved than ever before. Let us make 2026 a year where the power of the working class and the oppressed becomes the most potent glue that holds us together. Our power continues to be in our numbers and our victory in our solidarity,” the  statement added.”

The labour centre also highlighted security as a fundamental right, urging authorities to consolidate recent gains and ensure the safety of lives and property nationwide. It said Nigerians deserved peace wherever they lived and warned against any reversal of progress.