In a significant development that brings relief to many federal civil servants across Nigeria, the Federal Government has commenced the disbursement of the November 2023 wage awards.
This move comes as part of the agreement reached between organised labour and the government to alleviate the impacts of the subsidy removal on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol.
Several federal civil servants confirmed the decision to resume wage awards payments in separate interviews with Punch on Tuesday.
This development follows a period of suspension that drew criticism from activists and stakeholders, highlighting the government’s commitment to honouring its agreement with the workforce.
Amidst concerns over the government’s fiscal adjustments, including a N100 billion reduction in the wage award allocation in the 2023 supplementary budget, both the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) expressed their dissatisfaction.
The unions described the government’s earlier suspension of payments as dishonourable and called for the resumption of wage awards, hinting at possible industrial action if their demands were unmet.
A senior civil servant, preferring to remain anonymous, informed PUNCH Online, “Payment came in this morning, others have also confirmed receipt in my agency.”
Similarly, another senior official from a Federal Government-owned school outside Abuja also verified receiving the November 2023 wage award.