Mujeeb Akindoyin
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, has acknowledged that Nigeria’s N70,000 national minimum wage can no longer adequately cushion workers against the mounting economic pressures in the country.
Keyamo’s position came amid renewed pressure from organised labour and public-sector workers for an upward review of wages, with the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council, Trade Union Side, demanding urgent measures to ease the worsening cost-of-living crisis.
Speaking at the 2026 National Pre-Retirement Summit organised by XEM Consultants Limited in Abuja on Thursday, the minister said the purchasing power of workers had been weakened by prevailing economic pressures and urged the Federal Government to reach an understanding with labour over improved wages.
Keyamo, who previously served as Minister of State for Labour and Employment, said the government needed to recognise workers as a critical component of national productivity and development.
He recalled the negotiations that preceded the increase in the national minimum wage from N30,000 to N70,000, saying the present wage was insufficient to absorb the economic shocks confronting workers.
“I think they still need to increase the minimum wage. It might not be what Labour wants or in terms of the extent to which they want it, but somehow we have to meet labour midway.
“We have to meet labour midway because I don’t think that what we achieve, what we have now, is pro rata enough to absorb the shock.”
The minister also warned against policies and administrative practices that undermine workers’ welfare, arguing that poor treatment of employees could affect productivity and innovation.
According to him, the welfare of workers should take precedence over other expenditures where basic entitlements are being denied.
Keyamo particularly criticised situations in which workers allegedly struggle to obtain basic allowances while senior government officials approve substantial spending on international trips.
He said, “Without workers, the economy will not move,” stressing that the human factor remained central to the functioning of government and the wider economy.
The minister added that his approach to workers’ grievances was to ensure that such concerns were addressed before other matters were allowed to proceed.
His comments came days after public-sector workers under the JNPSNC issued a September 30 deadline to the Federal Government over the worsening economic situation confronting workers and their dependants.
The workers have demanded, among other measures, the stabilisation of the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, at N500 per litre, an immediate wage award, and upward review of salaries and allowances across the public service.
They also called for the immediate commencement of negotiations for a new national minimum wage ahead of January 2027. Reports on the workers’ demands said they cited rising food, transportation, housing, healthcare and education costs as factors eroding the purchasing power of salaries.
Organised labour has also been reported as seeking a substantially higher wage figure, with the N500,000 monthly minimum wage cited as a demand in the current discussions. The figure has been described by labour representatives as an opening position for negotiations rather than a final settlement.
The present N70,000 minimum wage was introduced in 2024 after negotiations involving the Federal Government, employers and organised labour.
Keyamo’s latest comments therefore come as pressure mounts for another review of workers’ earnings, particularly against the backdrop of higher living and transportation costs.
For workers, the emerging debate is no longer limited to the nominal size of salaries but also their purchasing power and ability to meet basic household expenses.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has indicated that preparations for negotiations on a new national minimum wage are expected ahead of the expiration of the current wage arrangement in 2027.
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