Senate Approves New Minimum Wage for All Workers and Domestic Staff

The Nigerian Senate has officially approved a new minimum wage that covers all workers, including domestic staff. Learn more about this significant decision and its implications.

The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio made it known that the recently accepted minimum wage of N70,000 pertains to all employees regardless of whether they work in private or public sectors and includes household staff like domestic helpers.

Confirmation of this major change occurred at the plenary session held on Tuesday.

After receiving the transmission from President Bola Tinubu, the National Assembly hurriedly passed the 2024 National Minimum Wage Amendment Act Bill.

Read Also: Tinubu’s Assent Pending for Minimum Wage Bill

The current economic conditions are reflected in the updated legislation, which revises the previous National Minimum Wage Act No. 8 of 2019 that established a minimum wage of N30,000 and required review every five years. The new bill reduces this review period to three years.

Akpabio stressed in the plenary that the minimum wage has become a compulsory benchmark for all recruitment, affirming that “No employee can receive less than N70,000 if you have employed them as a tailor or any other job.

The permitted minimum remuneration must be met to hire drivers, guards and domestic workers.” He expressed contentment with this fresh legislation and urged employers to comply with it closely.

Opeyemi Bamidele, the Senate’s Majority Leader, emphasized that the comprehensive discussions among all parties contributed to reaching a N70,000 amount. He characterized this recent legislation as an essential initiative by the Federal Government towards tackling escalating living expenses.

The landmark legislative move, aimed at improving workers’ conditions across Nigeria, came to an end as the Senate session adjourned until September 17th.