The Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC) has backed the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) over the Federal Government’s approval of a N70,000 monthly transportation allowance for public servants, faulting the Trade Union Congress (TUC) for rejecting the agreement.

The council said the TUC was not part of the negotiations that produced the agreement signed between the Federal Government and organised labour on October 27, 2026, and should therefore not oppose an outcome it was not involved in negotiating.

In a statement issued over the weekend, the National Secretary of the JNPSNC, Olowoyo Gbenga, said the N70,000 transportation allowance was a welcome development, particularly in view of the rising cost of transportation and the economic hardship confronting Nigerian workers.

He explained that the agreement was reached after more than six hours of negotiations at a meeting presided over by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi, with the NLC delegation led by its President, Joe Ajaero.

According to him, the negotiations also had the participation of the leadership of the JNPSNC and the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU).

Under the agreement, the N70,000 transportation allowance will be paid to public servants for six months, beginning from November 2026, to cushion the impact of rising transportation costs.

Gbenga urged state and local governments to adopt the agreement, saying their cooperation was necessary to extend the benefits to workers at the sub-national level.

He also disclosed that the agreement provided for the implementation of the 40 per cent peculiar allowance, which was expected to reflect the N70,000 minimum wage.

He said the implementation, which ought to have commenced in July 2024 alongside the new minimum wage, would begin at the federal, state and local government levels from November 2026, while arrears dating back to May 1, 2026, would be paid in three instalments.

The JNPSNC secretary further said the Federal Government had agreed to establish a tripartite negotiation committee comprising government, labour and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA).

He recalled that the demand for the committee was among the major issues that informed the three-day warning strike embarked upon by the council on October 2, 2026.

On the health sector, Gbenga said the meeting resolved some longstanding demands of health workers, including the adjustment of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS), which had been a subject of agitation for 13 years.

He said the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission had been given three weeks to conclude its work and forward its recommendations to the Presidential Committee on Salaries for approval and implementation.

He added that the meeting also approved the payment of 19 months’ arrears of health workers’ allowances in three instalments, beginning from December 2026.

Gbenga said the agreement also addressed the issue of hazard allowance for agricultural professional officers, with the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission expected to issue the necessary circular within three weeks to facilitate implementation.

On tax relief for public servants and private sector operators, he said the meeting resolved that the matter would be presented to the National Economic Council for deliberation, given its implications for federal and state governments.

The council, he added, would reconvene in one month to assess the level of implementation of the agreements and ensure that all parties fulfilled their commitments.

While acknowledging the TUC’s right to express its views on labour matters, Gbenga maintained that the congress was not involved in the negotiations that produced the transportation allowance.

He, however, challenged the TUC to negotiate a higher allowance if it believed workers deserved more than the N70,000 already agreed upon.

He said: “It will be highly commended if the Trade Union Congress can get a higher amount above the N70,000 transport allowance already agreed to by the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council and Joint Health Sector Union.”

The JNPSNC also dismissed the notion that the NLC represented only junior workers, explaining that its affiliate unions had members across ministries, departments and agencies, including officers up to directorate level.

Gbenga said the agreement was reached after extensive negotiations and urged the Federal, state and local governments to ensure its full implementation, stressing that previous agreements with labour unions had often suffered from poor implementation. (The Sun)