Seven months after negotiations concluded with the approval of the new N70,000 minimum wage, the Federal Government began disbursing the updated salaries to public servants across all levels of the civil service on Thursday. This adjustment impacts over 1.2 million federal employees, with payments commencing in September.
A warrant for this month’s salary, signed by the Accountant-General of the Federation, Dr. Oluwatoyin Madein, and addressed to the Budget Office of the Federation, authorized the payment of the revised wages.
Documents from the National Income, Salaries, and Wages Commission detail the annual earnings of civil servants under the Consolidated Public Service Salary Structure (CONPSS). For instance, Grade Level 1 officers will now receive N930,000 per annum, while Grade Level 2 officers will earn N934,160. Salaries increase progressively, with Level 17 officers, typically permanent secretaries, now earning N6,918,560 annually.
Under each grade level, employees will receive specific salaries depending on their step within the grade. For example, a Grade Level 1, Step 2 officer will earn N935,585 per annum, with incremental raises up to N1,008,209 by Step 15.
The Director of Press for the Office of the Accountant-General, Bawa Mokwa, confirmed the implementation, stating, “The new minimum wage payment starts this month. Civil servants can confirm through their salary alerts. However, no information on arrears has been provided yet.”
An anonymous civil servant corroborated that some workers had already started receiving the new wages. A detailed warrant reveals that 1,236,824 employees, including those in Ministries, Departments, Agencies (MDAs), Armed Forces, Paramilitary, and educational institutions, are set to benefit.
The new minimum wage law, signed by President Bola Tinubu on July 29, 2024, followed negotiations with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC). The National Salaries and Wages Commission noted that the implementation date was set for July 29, aligning with the signing of the law.
In a letter dated September 24, 2024, the Accountant-General detailed the salary breakdown for MDAs, retired heads of service, the Nigeria Police, the military, paramilitary, and tertiary institutions, noting that a 35% and 25% salary adjustment for specific staff categories will also be applied.
Additionally, the Federal University Teaching Hospital Wukari was added to the payroll in September 2024, with a staff count of 239 and a gross amount of N52.3 million.
The breakdown indicates that the monthly wage bill for the over 1.2 million employees will total N334.9 billion, resulting in an annual expenditure of approximately N4.019 trillion.
To accommodate the new wage structure, the government has increased revenue generation, which affected revenue distribution to states. During the August FAAC meeting, N200 billion was transferred to the non-savings account, bringing the total statutory allocation to N595 billion.
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