Nigerian workers face worst survival crisis, NLC warns

Nigeria’s largest labour union has warned that workers and many citizens are facing what it describes as the worst survival crisis in the country’s history, driven by soaring inflation, insecurity, low wages and weak social protection.

Workers ‘worse off than peers in conflict hit African states’

The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, said the situation had left Nigerian workers worse off than their counterparts in several other African countries, including conflict hit states such as Somalia and Sudan.

Speaking on Tuesday, the NLC president, Joe Ajaero, said the current hardship was more severe than conditions experienced during the civil war or past periods of economic austerity.

“Nigerians, especially Nigerian workers, are currently confronted with the worst survival crisis in the history of our nation,” he said. “At the heart of this crisis lies the growing scourge of financial insecurity.”

Mr Ajaero said declining incomes, rising prices and widespread violence had combined to create unprecedented pressure on households across the country. He argued that work no longer guaranteed the ability to meet basic needs, leaving workers under constant financial stress.

According to the labour leader, Nigerian workers now rank near the bottom in income and welfare when compared with workers in many African countries. He said most households had little or no capacity to save, invest or plan for the future.

Inflation, weak wages and insecurity deepen hardship

The NLC linked the hardship to Nigeria’s high inflation rate, which stood above 30 percent in 2024, among the highest globally. Mr Ajaero said this had sharply eroded purchasing power, despite official claims that inflation was easing.

He added that real wages had stagnated or declined, with salaries in both the public and private sectors failing to keep pace with rising prices. The national minimum wage of 70,000 naira, he said, was insufficient to cover basic living costs, noting that the price of a bag of rice now exceeds the monthly minimum wage.

The union also blamed currency depreciation, rising fuel prices and higher transport costs for pushing up the prices of goods and services. Food inflation, it said, now consumes as much as 80 percent of household income in many families.

Mr Ajaero said unemployment and underemployment had increased pressure on wages and driven many workers into low paying and insecure jobs, while social safety nets remained weak or unavailable, particularly for those in the informal sector.

He also highlighted the burden of high housing and transport costs, multiple taxes and deductions, and rising electricity and telecommunications tariffs. Poor public infrastructure, he said, had forced workers to spend more of their income on private alternatives for power, water, security and healthcare.

The NLC warned that widespread insecurity, including insurgency, banditry and kidnapping, had further disrupted livelihoods, displaced families and destroyed assets in several parts of the country.

Without urgent action to stabilise the economy, raise real incomes and strengthen social protection, the union said the financial insecurity facing Nigerian workers would continue to worsen, with serious consequences for both individual welfare and the wider economy.

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Mr Ajaero said unemployment and underemployment had increased pressure on wages and driven many workers into low paying and insecure jobs, while social safety nets remained weak or unavailable, particularly for those in the informal sector.

He also highlighted the burden of housing and transport costs, multiple taxes and deductions, and rising electricity and telecommunications tariffs. Poor public infrastructure, he said, had forced workers to spend more of their income on private alternatives for power, water, security and healthcare.

The NLC warned that widespread insecurity, including insurgency, banditry and kidnapping, had further disrupted livelihoods, displaced families and destroyed assets in several parts of the country.

Without urgent action to stabilise the economy, raise real incomes and strengthen social protection, the union said the financial insecurity facing Nigerian workers would continue to worsen, with serious consequences for both individual welfare and the wider economy.