N70,000 Allowance: You Cannot Negotiate for TUC, Osifo Tells NLC

The President of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Festus Osifo, has insisted that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) cannot negotiate on behalf of the TUC without its participation or consultation, amid an escalating disagreement over the Federal Government’s proposed ₦70,000 transport allowance for public servants.

Osifo made the position known on Monday while appearing on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, where he challenged NLC President Joe Ajaero’s claim that the NLC could negotiate independently on labour matters.

The dispute followed the Federal Government’s announcement of a ₦70,000 monthly transport allowance for public servants for six months, beginning in November 2026. The agreement was reached after discussions involving government representatives and the NLC.

The TUC rejected the arrangement, arguing that a temporary allowance would not adequately address workers’ economic difficulties. It called instead for an increase in salaries, alongside the implementation of outstanding agreements affecting workers.

Osifo said the TUC must be involved in negotiations affecting its members, stressing that the NLC’s larger number of affiliated unions did not give it the authority to represent the TUC without consultation.

“There is nowhere in ILO regulations that says a trade centre cannot negotiate for its members,” Osifo said, challenging Ajaero to identify any International Labour Organization provision that permits one labour centre to negotiate on behalf of another without its participation.

He also questioned the process through which the transport allowance agreement was reached, arguing that the meeting did not constitute a properly convened Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council meeting.

Ajaero, however, maintained that the NLC could negotiate independently, citing the principle of representation of the largest number of workers. He argued that the TUC could participate alongside the NLC but could not independently negotiate on behalf of organised labour as a whole.

The disagreement has exposed divisions between Nigeria’s two major labour centres at a time when workers continue to face rising living costs.

While the Federal Government’s intervention is intended to provide temporary relief from transportation expenses, the TUC maintains that a broader salary review would offer a more sustainable response to workers’ economic challenges.