The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Lagos State Chapter, has called for a new minimum wage of N150,000 for workers in the state, citing rising costs of living and recent wage reviews in other parts of the country.
Lagos NLC Chairperson, Funmi Sesi, made the demand on Thursday following reports of upward adjustments in Imo and Ebonyi States.
Currently, Lagos workers earn a minimum of N85,000, but Sesi argued that this is no longer sustainable given the state’s high cost of accommodation, transportation, feeding, and utilities.
“The time has come for an upward review of minimum wage in Lagos. At least someone has taken the bull by the horns and opened the space.
No one can blame Governor Sanwo-Olu now if he implements a higher wage for Lagos workers, because we deserve a better wage and decent working conditions commensurate with the economic realities, especially in Lagos,” she said.
Sesi expressed optimism that other state governments would soon emulate Imo and Ebonyi in raising wages.
Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State recently increased the minimum wage for state civil servants from ₦76,000 to ₦104,000, while the Ebonyi Government raised its workers’ pay from ₦70,000 to ₦90,000, according to the state’s Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Chief Ikeuwa Omebe.
The Lagos NLC insists that the country’s commercial capital, with its higher living standards and economic demands, cannot afford to lag behind.
