The Federal Workers Forum (FWF) has called on the administration of President Bola Tinubu to immediately pay the outstanding three months wage award owed to federal workers, harmonize salaries across the public service, and improve general welfare conditions.
In a statement issued on Wednesday and signed by Comrade Andrew Emelieze, the National Coordinator of the forum, the group accused the federal government of neglecting its financial obligations to workers, which has worsened their economic hardship.
“The refusal of the federal government to pay up the balance of the outstanding three months wage award as promised by the Accountant General of the Federation has shown clearly how our government has been treating her workers,” the statement read. “Same also has been the case for so many backlog of arrears owed the federal workers, especially promotion arrears, in some cases over ten years backlog owed the federal workers in Nigeria.”
According to the forum, the ₦35,000 wage award was introduced as a cost of living allowance following the removal of fuel subsidy and the devaluation of the naira. However, the group criticized the government for its inconsistent and delayed payments.
“Our government eventually decided to give a paltry sum of ₦35,000 to all federal workers irrespective of their grade levels,” the forum said. “The payment since its implementation has been inconsistent and staggering. Most times, it has taken the Federal Workers Forum to cry out before payments are made. As a matter of fact, the federal government has been very unfaithful in the payment of the wage award, thus the purpose of setting up the wage award to cushion the horrible effects of fuel subsidy removal has been defeated.”
The group explained that payment of the wage awards was halted in February 2024 after the new national minimum wage took effect in August 2024. At that time, the government reportedly owed workers five months of wage awards covering March to July 2024.
After repeated protests, the Accountant General promised to settle the arrears and implement the new minimum wage in full. “Most unfortunately,” the group said, “the federal government has only managed to pay just two months, remaining the balance of May, June and July 2024. ₦35,000 × 3 = ₦105,000 is what the federal government is owing each federal government worker since last year, over 15 months now.”
The forum described the situation as “a national embarrassment,” accusing the government of “economic sabotage” and “insensitivity to the plights of the federal workers.”
It also criticized the new minimum wage implementation, claiming it failed to provide any meaningful increase in take-home pay.
“The same Accountant General of the Federation that earlier promised the full implementation of the new national minimum wage as widely published in the media had turned around to say that the new national minimum wage has been fully implemented,” the forum said.
“We the federal workers are still in shock and in great surprise as nothing significant was added to the salaries of all federal workers. Only ₦40,000 flat was what was added to the salary of each worker across all levels, and there was also heavy taxation on the ₦40,000. Hence, all workers got less than ₦40,000 as the promised new national minimum wage.”
The group further said, “It is horrible to note that despite the increase in the price of petrol, the devaluation of the naira, the increased national budget, and the rising cost of living, only ₦40,000 was what was added to the salaries of the federal government workers in Nigeria.”
The forum also accused the organized labour, including the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), of failing to defend the interests of workers.
“Most painful aspect of it all is that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC), and their affiliate unions have endorsed these ridiculous ill-treatment of the federal government workers,” the statement added.
The forum lamented that many federal workers are now living in debt and struggling to meet basic needs because their salaries no longer reflect the true cost of living.
“President Tinubu, we are really very disappointed in you,” the forum said. “Your poise for our welfare is really very abysmally poor. You are insensitive to our plights. This accounts for the ‘Japa’ syndrome among the federal workers and the recent wave of agitations, strikes, and protest. Today ASUU is being pushed to the wall and our collective future is at stake.”
“This current ₦70,000 minimum wage is a slave wage; we call for its immediate abolision,” the group declared.
The Federal Workers Forum listed several demands to the federal government, calling for urgent action to ease workers’ suffering.
The group urged the government to “pay up now the balance of the outstanding three months wage award, clear the backlog of promotion arrears, and work out a cost of living allowance for the workers, preferably pay 30% of our salaries as cost of living allowance.”
They also demanded the “resumption of the monthly payment of ₦35,000 wage award pending the payment of a living wage and implementation of the 40% peculiar allowance and pay 14 months outstanding arrears.”
Additionally, the forum called for the “immediate abolision of the contributory pension funds,” citing non-remittance of deductions for four months. It also urged the government to abolish compulsory housing funds, provide free healthcare for both workers and retirees, and reinstate leave bonuses and domestic servants’ allowances for directorate cadre officers.
The group rejected the proposed 5% petrol tax, describing it as an additional burden on already struggling Nigerians. It also called for the reinstatement of the fuel subsidy to reduce the high cost of living.
“We call on government to honour the agreement reached with our university lecturers and pay up all the backlog of arrears owed the lecturers,” the statement added.
The forum further urged the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress, and their affiliate unions to “call for a warning strike to demand improved welfare for the federal workers.”
In its closing remarks, the group expressed solidarity with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in their ongoing struggle, saying, “We the federal workers are in solidarity with ASUU as they embark on the warning strike and we call on the NLC/TUC to declare a one-day national sympathy strike in solidarity with the ASUU struggles.”