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Oshiomhole wrongly claims minimum wage has risen to ₦140,000

Nurudeen Akewushola
Nurudeen Akewushola
Reading Time: 2 min.
File Photo: Adams Oshiomhole

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Adams Oshiomhole, the senator representing Edo North Senatorial District, has claimed that Nigeria’s new national minimum wage has been negotiated and increased to ₦140,000.

Oshiomhole was the governor of Nigeria’s Edo state from 2008 to 2016. He was also president of the Nigeria Labour Congress, one of the country’s largest trade unions.

Oshiomhole made the claim on 5 November 2026, during the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, south-western Nigeria.

In a video of the event shared on Facebook and YouTube, the former Edo State governor said President Bola Tinubu had approved an additional ₦70,000 for Nigerian workers, bringing the minimum wage from ₦70,000 to ₦140,000.

He argued that the president understood that Nigerians needed relief from economic hardship, not tears.

The claim has generated reactions on social media, with some users welcoming the reported increase while others questioned its accuracy.

The FactCheckHub examines whether the federal government and organised labour have negotiated a new national minimum wage of ₦140,000.

CLAIM

Nigeria’s new national minimum wage has been negotiated and increased to ₦140,000.

FINDINGS

Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is MISLEADING.

The national minimum wage remains ₦70,000 under the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act, 2024, which President Bola Tinubu signed into law on 29 July 2024. The legislation increased the minimum wage from ₦30,000 to ₦70,000 and reduced the period for reviewing it from five years to three years, according to TheCable.

Further investigation by The FactCheckHub shows that the Federal Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) agreed to a temporary monthly transport intervention of ₦70,000 for public service workers for six months, beginning in November 2026.

According to TheCable, the agreement was reached at a conciliation meeting between government representatives and the NLC in Abuja on 27 October 2026. The resolutions were contained in a memorandum of understanding signed by representatives of both parties.

However, the agreement did not increase the statutory minimum wage to ₦140,000. Instead, it provided for a six-month transport intervention to cushion the impact of rising living costs. The parties also agreed to constitute a Minimum Wage Negotiation Committee and commence discussions immediately, but they disagreed on the effective date for implementing a new minimum wage.

A Punch report also confirmed that the ₦70,000 payment was a transport intervention separate from the national minimum wage.

The Trade Union Congress (TUC) subsequently rejected the temporary allowance, demanding a permanent salary increase and the implementation of outstanding agreements with workers. The union argued that temporary interventions were not sustainable and proposed that the Federal Government increase the salary of its lowest-paid workers to ₦300,000.

In a statement by Festus Osifo, its president, and Nuhu Toro, the secretary-general, the TUC maintained that the government should increase workers’ salaries instead of introducing another temporary allowance.

Although the government and the NLC agreed to begin discussions on a new minimum wage, the 27 October agreement did not establish a new wage rate of ₦140,000.

VERDICT

The claim that Nigeria’s new national minimum wage has been negotiated and increased to ₦140,000 is MISLEADING. The statutory minimum wage remains ₦70,000. The additional ₦70,000 approved by the Federal Government is a temporary monthly transport intervention for public service workers for six months, not an increase in the national minimum wage. Although the government and the NLC agreed to commence fresh wage negotiations, no new minimum wage agreement had been concluded as of 11 November 2026.

 

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Nurudeen Akewushola is a fact-checker with FactCheckHub. He has authored several fact checks which have contributed to the fight against information disorder. You can reach him via nyahaya@icirnigeria.org and @NurudeenAkewus1 via Twitter.

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