Activist-lawyer Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) has clarified that the forthcoming National Minimum Wage Act 2025 will be binding on all employers, except those explicitly exempted by the law, once enacted by the National Assembly. In a statement titled “Legal Matters Arising From Proposed National Minimum Wage Act” issued yesterday in Lagos, Falana emphasized that state legislatures lack the authority to set a minimum wage for public service workers within their jurisdictions.
Falana highlighted that Item 34 of the Exclusive Legislative List covers “labour, including trade unions, industrial relations; conditions, safety and welfare of labour; industrial disputes; prescribing a national minimum wage for the Federation or any part thereof; and industrial arbitration.” He explained, “By virtue of Section 4 of the Constitution, the National Assembly is empowered to prescribe a National Minimum Wage for workers in the public and private sectors in Nigeria.”
He stressed that the objective of a national minimum wage law is to prevent employers from paying wages that are insufficient for basic living needs. Falana refuted claims by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and some senior legal practitioners that setting a uniform national minimum wage contradicts the principles of federalism.
“Since labour and trade unions are in the Exclusive Legislative List, the National Assembly enacted the Labour Act, Trade Union Act, Factories Act, and Employees Compensation Act, among others. These laws are applicable nationwide despite Nigeria's federal structure,” Falana noted. He asserted that such uniform regulations are crucial to safeguarding workers' rights and ensuring fair compensation across the country.
