The Federal Workers Forum (FWF) has called on the Federal Government to increase the minimum wage for federal civil servants from N70,000 to N300,000, citing rising living costs and the declining purchasing power of workers.
The demand was contained in a letter dated September 2, 2026, addressed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the National Assembly.
The letter, signed by the forum’s National Coordinator, Andrew Emelieze, and General Secretary, Ogundele Ayodele, was addressed to the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives through the Clerk of the National Assembly.
President Tinubu, the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation were also listed among the recipients.
Beyond the proposed N300,000 minimum wage, the workers called for a new salary structure that would place the maximum monthly salary for Level 17 federal civil servants at N1.5 million.
“We call for justice and immediate wage review now, adjust the federal minimum wage to N300,000 and a maximum wage of N1.5 million for the Level 17 officers,” the forum said.
The FWF argued that the current salary structure no longer reflects the economic realities confronting federal workers and their families.
The group also accused the Federal Government of failing to fully implement the N70,000 minimum wage approved in 2024, particularly the consequential adjustment and associated allowances.
According to the workers, the 2024 wage review increased the national minimum wage from N30,000 to N70,000 but resulted in what they described as a uniform N40,000 increase across the various levels of the federal civil service.
The forum said the continued rise in the cost of food, transportation, accommodation, electricity, cooking gas and other basic necessities had further eroded workers’ purchasing power.
Under the proposed salary structure, an entry-level federal worker on Level 1 Step 1 would earn N300,000 monthly, while Level 2 and Level 3 workers would receive N330,000 and N360,000 respectively.
The proposed salaries would rise progressively, reaching N1 million for Level 15, N1.2 million for Level 16 and N1.5 million for Level 17 officers.
The workers also demanded the payment of outstanding salaries, promotion arrears and other entitlements, as well as the immediate implementation and payment of arrears of the 40 per cent peculiar allowance.
The forum maintained that the statutory three-year review period for the minimum wage should not prevent the government from responding to the worsening economic conditions facing workers.
The demand comes amid ongoing concerns over the adequacy and implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage introduced in 2024.
