Nigerian union denies minimum wage strike threat in Yobe state
IN SHORT: The Yobe state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress has denied circulating a notice of a planned strike on 1 December. It described the notice as false and urged workers to disregard it.
In July 2024, Nigerian president Bola Tinubu signed a N70,000 minimum wage into law after months of negotiations involving the government, labour unions and the private sector.
Yobe state has not yet implemented the new wage, but in October, the state government formed a 10-member committee to oversee its implementation for civil servants.
Against this backdrop, a circular allegedly from the Yobe state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) appeared online, calling for a nationwide strike on 1 December.
The NLC is one of Nigeria's two biggest unions.
The circular was posted on Facebook with the caption: "Yobe state declare indefinite strike ahead of Dec 1 More ssates loading."
The same claim appeared on Facebook here and here. (Note: See more instances of the claim at the end of this report).
But did the Yobe branch of the NLC declare a statewide strike to start on 1 December? We checked.
Labour union says circular is fake
As reported by various media outlets, Muktar Tarbutu, the chairperson of the state NLC, dismissed the circular calling for a statewide strike as "entirely false and without any basis".
"You may recall that the joint committee between the government and the NLC has concluded its negotiation on new minimum wage and the report has since been forwarded to His Excellency the executive Governor of Yobe State Honourable Mai Mala Buni CON his consideration and approval," he said in a statement.
The NLC urged workers to ignore the circular, be wary of fake news and check sources before sharing.
The strike notice lacked key details such as the address, contact details, name of the union leader and signature, all of which were included in the official statement refuting the claim.
Local media reported that the Yobe state government had agreed to pay its workers the new minimum wage.
The claim that there is a call for a strike by Yobe state workers on 1 December is false.
