THE WORKERS’ Rights Campaign (WRC) has thrown its support behind the three-day warning strike by public sector workers, calling on the Federal Government to address workers’ demands for improved wages and lower fuel prices.
In a statement on Friday, October 2, 2026, signed by WRC Chairperson, Frances Akinjole, and its Secretary, Bàbá Ayé, the organisation said the action, being undertaken under the aegis of the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC) Trade Union Side, reflected longstanding concerns over the rising cost of living and declining purchasing power among Nigerian workers.
The WRC said the unions’ demands included a new national minimum wage of at least N500,000 and a reduction in the pump price of petrol to N500 per litre.
According to the organisation, the demands were driven by the widening gap between workers’ incomes and the cost of meeting basic household needs.
“Workers deserve better,” the group said, arguing that the current take-home pay of many workers was inadequate to meet their living expenses.
The WRC said it had held a series of online and physical meetings involving labour leaders and rank-and-file workers to discuss the condition of the Nigerian working class and the need for what it described as “living wages.”
It also said the JNPSNC Trade Union Side had made demands for measures aimed at ensuring decent work and improved living standards for public sector employees.
The organisation criticised the Federal Government’s economic policies under President Bola Tinubu, arguing that the policies had placed additional pressure on working people while disproportionately benefiting wealthier Nigerians and businesses.
The WRC said trade unions had given the Federal Government adequate notice of their concerns but alleged that the government had failed to respond sufficiently to the issues raised.
It described the ongoing strike as part of a broader struggle over wages, the cost of living and workers’ rights.
The organisation also called on the JNPSNC Trade Union Side to maintain pressure on the government after the three-day warning strike. It urged the unions to consider a wider public sector strike if the workers’ demands were not adequately addressed.
The WRC referred to labour struggles in Nigeria in 1989 and 1990, saying the current action should develop into a broader mobilisation capable of securing a substantial review of the national minimum wage.
Beyond the public sector unions, the organisation appealed to the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC), industrial unions across different sectors and civil society organisations to support the campaign for what it described as a national minimum wage that reflects the cost of living.
The three-day warning strike comes amid continuing debates over wages, fuel prices and the effects of economic reforms on Nigerian households and workers. The WRC’s intervention adds its voice to the unions’ call for measures intended to improve workers’ purchasing power and living standards.
