As labour unions commemorate this year’s Workers’ Day today across the country, civil servants in various states on Wednesday said the N70,000 new national minimum wage is not enough to cater for their cost of living amidst rising inflation.

Last year, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved N70,000 minimum wage for Nigerian workers. Standing on this template, some states agreed to pay their workers above the N70,000 new national minimum wage and commenced the implementation of the payment.

Despite this, workers in various states have expressed worry over their inability to use the pay to cater for their necessary needs.

Inflation has affected salary increase in Kano

In Kano, the state government has commenced payment of N71,000 as new national minimum wage, a little above the N70,000 threshold approved by the federal government and combined labour unions.

Although the implementation was also in full, many workers who spoke to Daily Trust said the amount could still barely cater for them for a whole month, hence they resort to alternatives.

Sulaiman Aminu Yakasai, a civil servant in the state said, “For us the civil servants in Kano State, we have the advantage of combining work with business as side hustle. Even the minimum wage we get is still not enough for us and our family. So, I usually go to market after closing hours and on weekends to make ends meet.”

Similarly, another classroom teacher in Kano, Salihu Umar, said he still doesn’t regret keeping his shop at Kantin Kwari garment market even after he got a salary job, saying even with the increase, the salary does not sustain him for a complete month.

The story is not different to even married women who are civil servants. Binta Abdullahi, a health worker in the state said she also sells wares to her colleagues at work and recovers the money at the end of the month. She said she spends more than half her salary on transport to and from her work.

“Our state government has increased our minimum wage and has started payment since last year, but the reality is that inflation has already eaten the increase. It is almost impossible now for a worker to live comfortably on salary without debt,” she lamented.

Workers in Kaduna express disappointment

A Kaduna-based teacher, Abdul, expressed disappointment over the state government’s treatment of civil servants, particularly regarding the minimum wage. While describing the situation as unfair, he said workers were being treated like slaves. “Our minimum wage can’t even take care of our families. Kaduna State hasn’t fully implemented it, and local government workers are the worst hit,” he said.