The Federal Workers Forum has called on the Federal Government to restore fuel subsidy and introduce a permanent Cost-of-Living Allowance for federal workers, citing the sustained pressure of rising fuel, transport and essential commodity prices on households.
The demand was contained in the forum’s Federal Workers Charter of Demands: A Manifesto for Social Transformation, signed by its Coordinator, Andrew Emelieze, on Monday and made available to journalists in Abuja. The workers also called for a price-control mechanism for goods and services and measures to deliberately revalue the naira.
The forum’s call for subsidy restoration marks a renewed challenge to the Federal Government’s market-based petrol pricing policy, which began after President Bola Tinubu declared at his inauguration on May 29, 2023, that “subsidy is gone”. The policy subsequently shifted petrol pricing towards market forces, with changes in crude costs, foreign exchange, logistics and other supply-chain factors increasingly reflected in pump prices.
Beyond fuel pricing, the workers demanded the immediate implementation of the 40 per cent peculiar allowance and payment of outstanding balances dating back to the July 2024 implementation of the new minimum wage. They also sought full implementation of the consequential adjustment to the minimum wage and payment of associated arrears.
The forum further demanded a permanent Cost-of-Living Allowance and a Family Support Allowance for federal workers, alongside the payment of outstanding salaries, promotion arrears and other entitlements. It called for harmonised salaries and pensions across the Federal Public Service and an end to prolonged stagnation in the public service.
On the broader economy, the workers urged the government to intervene in the rising prices of essential goods, particularly cement, through increased domestic production. They argued that mass production of basic commodities would help drive industrialisation and create employment while reducing dependence on costly supplies.
The charter also proposed comprehensive health insurance for federal workers and pensioners, tax reliefs and rebates, car and housing loan schemes, standardised pensions and settlement of arrears owed to retired workers. The forum equally called for stronger social protection, including allowances for unemployed and underemployed Nigerians.
On healthcare, it demanded free treatment for children, pregnant women and the elderly in government hospitals, alongside a long-term plan for universal healthcare. It also called for federal intervention in the treatment of cancer and other life-threatening diseases, as well as an end to child labour.
The workers’ demands come as the removal of petrol subsidy remains one of the most consequential components of Nigeria’s economic reforms, with higher market-determined fuel prices feeding into transportation and distribution costs across the economy. The forum is seeking a return to subsidy alongside measures to address wages, pensions, taxation and wider social protection.