The Nigeria Labour Congress has given the Federal Government until around October 23 to cut petrol prices and begin renegotiating the national minimum wage.

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

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (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 at Labour House in Abuja.

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

What Labour Wants

The two-week window runs from Friday, October 9, 2026, which puts the deadline at around October 23.

“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 government should reduce petrol prices to the level prevailing when the current national minimum wage was signed into law in 2024. He said the high price of petrol had driven up transportation fares and the cost of food and other essential goods, worsening the hardship facing Nigerians.

“Rendered Worthless”

On the minimum wage, the communiqué said the current wage had been eroded by the depreciation of the naira and the rising cost of living, leaving workers unable to afford basic necessities. It said the wage “has been rendered worthless by the relentless depreciation of the naira and the astronomical rise in the cost of living.”

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

Other Demands

The NLC also made the following demands of the federal government:

• Implement the terms of settlement reached with the Joint Health Sector Unions and Assembly of Healthcare Professionals (JOHESU) on February 5, 2026.
• Implement the outstanding demands of the Joint Public Sector Negotiating Council (JPSNC), as well as agreed tax relief measures.
• Make immediate payment of wage awards to workers to cushion the impact of rising living costs.

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.

Background

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 federal government’s failure to cut the petrol price to N500 per litre and begin fresh negotiation on a 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.

Government’s Response So Far

In response to public outcry over the high cost of petrol, Finance Minister Taiwo Oyedele 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.

The government has also announced that NNPC Retail will forgo its retail profit margin and sell petrol at cost for 30 days. The Presidency has said the measure should not be read as a return to the petrol subsidy, which ended in May 2023.