Adams Oshiomhole, former president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and ex-governor of Edo State, recently spoke about the financial struggles of Nigerian workers. According to him, today’s workers are poorer than those from previous decades, even though wages have increased on paper.

During a lecture at the National Institute of Security Studies in Abuja, Oshiomhole explained that the current minimum wage of N70,000 is worth only about $42 when converted to dollars. He compared this to Nigeria’s first minimum wage, introduced in 1981 under President Shehu Shagari, which was N125, equal to $160 at the time. This shows that while wages have gone up in numbers, their real value has decreased significantly.

Oshiomhole argued that the federal government and revenue-generating states should consider increasing the minimum wage beyond N70,000. He believes this would help workers handle the rising cost of living and inflation. Additionally, he called for changes to the minimum wage law to include domestic workers and other small-business employees who currently don’t receive the standard wage. He noted that some businesses, especially in the tech sector, make high profits with fewer employees and should be able to pay fair wages even if they don’t have large staff numbers.

In summary, Oshiomhole believes that better wages are essential to lifting Nigerian workers out of financial struggle and helping them lead better lives.