N70,000 allowance: 3 unions disown JNPSNC statement, back TUC

From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja Three public service trade unions have disowned a statement issued in the name of the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC) backing the Federal Government’s proposed N70,000 monthly transport allowance, insisting that they were neither consulted nor represented in the decision. The unions, the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC), the Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHRIAI), and the Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP), also declared their support for the Trade Union Congress (TUC), which rejected the proposed allowance as inadequate. The unions, in a joint statement issued on November 1, said they were not invited to any meeting where the issues contained in the JNPSNC statement of October 30 were discussed, adding that they neither participated in its preparation nor authorised anyone to speak on their behalf. They described the statement as unauthorised, warning that it should not be presented as the collective position of public service trade unions. The development comes amid disagreements among organised labour over the Federal Government’s proposed N70,000 monthly transport intervention for public servants. While the JNPSNC backed the agreement reached between the Federal Government and organised labour on October 27, faulting the TUC for rejecting it despite not participating in the negotiations, the congress maintained that temporary wage awards were inadequate and demanded an immediate salary increase to cushion the effects of rising living costs. The three unions said they aligned with the TUC’s position, arguing that the transport intervention was no substitute for decent wages, fair remuneration and a sustainable improvement in workers’ living standards. They said transportation, food, housing and other essential needs had become increasingly unaffordable, insisting that Nigerian workers deserved adequate remuneration rather than what they described as token gestures. The unions also faulted the JNPSNC over its handling of the consequential adjustment arising from the previous minimum wage implementation, alleging that workers were shortchanged. According to them, rather than applying the 133 per cent adjustment to the lowest-paid worker and cascading it appropriately across the salary structure, the council negotiated a flat N40,000 addition across the board. They said the arrangement undermined salary differentials and disadvantaged workers, demanding transparency and a review of the adjustment. The unions further accused the JNPSNC of excluding constituent unions from decisions affecting their members’ salaries, welfare and conditions of service. They expressed concern that even the council’s Vice Chairman, representing the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN), was not consulted. The unions noted that ASCSN, which they said represented more than 300,000 public servants, was equally sidelined, describing the development as a serious setback to the credibility of the negotiating process. They stressed that their members were public service workers across federal and state establishments, including statutory corporations, government-owned companies, universities, teaching hospitals, general hospitals and research institutions. CONHESS: JOHESU threatens nationwide strike over 13-year delayNLC-TUC rift: JNPSNC defends N70,000 transport allowance dealN70,000 allowance: Ajaero faults TUC over rejection of FG’s offer The unions also cautioned that the JNPSNC was a public service negotiating platform and not a third national labour centre alongside the TUC and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). They warned against any attempt by the council to assume the representative responsibilities of the two recognised labour centres or undermine the independence of registered trade unions. Among their demands were formal acknowledgement of their disassociation from the October 30 statement, an end to presenting it as the collective position of public service unions, recognition of their unions in relevant negotiating structures and respect for the independence of registered trade unions. They also demanded respect for the TUC’s rejection of the N70,000 transport intervention and its call for a salary increase. The unions called on the Federal Government and relevant negotiating authorities to address the alleged exclusion and ensure that all negotiating structures operated within their established mandates. They declared: “You cannot speak for workers without their mandate. You cannot claim consensus without consultation. You cannot negotiate workers’ welfare while denying their unions the right to representation.” The joint statement was signed by the presidents of the three unions, Comrades Kayode Alakija, John Alli and Kamal Ibrahim. The TUC had earlier rejected the Federal Government’s proposed N70,000 wage award for workers, demanding an immediate salary increase to cushion the effects of the rising cost of living. The labour centre described temporary wage awards as inadequate and unsustainable, insisting that the government should increase workers’ salaries without waiting for negotiations over a new national minimum wage. In a statement signed by its President, Comrade Festus Osifo, and Secretary-General, Comrade Nuhu Toro, the TUC also demanded the immediate implementation of the outstanding Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) adjustment agreed with the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), accusing the Federal Government of failing to honour the agreement seven months after it was reached. The congress argued that there was no law preventing the Federal Government from increasing workers’ salaries outside the minimum wage negotiation process, noting that some states had already raised their minimum wages above N100,000. It proposed that the Federal Government could raise the salary of the lowest-paid worker to N300,000 and apply appropriate consequential adjustments to other salary grades. However, the JNPSNC had backed the NLC over the Federal Government’s approval of the N70,000 monthly transport allowance for public servants, faulting the TUC for rejecting the agreement. The council said the TUC was not part of the negotiations that produced the agreement signed between the Federal Government and organised labour on October 27, 2026, and should therefore not oppose an outcome in whose negotiation it had no involvement. In a statement issued over the weekend, the National Secretary of the JNPSNC, Olowoyo Gbenga, described the transport allowance as a welcome development, particularly in view of rising transportation costs and the economic hardship confronting Nigerian workers.   Tags:

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