Oyo begins N80,000 minimum wage January
CHIGOZIE AMADI
Government workers in Oyo State will begin to receive the N80,000 minimum wage from January 2025.
A statement on Tuesday by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Prince Dotun Oyelade, revealed that the Oyo State government reached an agreement with organised labour on the implementation of the new minimum wage and consequential adjustments.
The agreement was signed by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Olanike Adeyemo, and the Head of Service, Mrs. Olubunmi Oni, representing the government.
Signing on behalf of the organised labour were Kayode Martins of the Nigeria Labour Congress and Bosun Olabiyi of the Trade Union Congress, alongside other labour leaders.
The negotiating council agreed that the new minimum wage salary structure would take effect nominally from July 1, 2024, but would be implemented financially from January 1, 2025.
According to the commissioner, workers who retire between July 1 and December 31, 2024, will have their retirement benefits calculated based on the new minimum wage.
The statement further urged all ministries and extra-ministerial departments to intensify their revenue generation efforts to significantly improve the state’s Internally Generated Revenue.
The commissioner noted that the Oyo State government currently spends over N6bn monthly on salaries and wages, amounting to over N77bn annually, making Oyo State one of the top three employers of labour in the federation.
While government workers will begin 2025 with the bumper salary scale across the board, they can also look forward to ending 2024 with the traditional 13th-month salary—a benefit they have consistently enjoyed since 2019 under Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration.
