The Federal Government has commenced payment of February 2026 salaries to treasury-funded workers and will begin clearing the outstanding three months’ wage award arrears from March.
The development follows an ultimatum issued by organised labour in the federal public service, which gave the government until 27 February to release funds for wage awards and other pending allowances owed to workers across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
The leadership of the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (trade union side) had warned in a letter to the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment that failure to meet the deadline would compel the eight unions in the civil service to take decisive action.
The unions accused the government of withholding funds meant for workers, alleging that the relevant agencies were prepared to process payments once the Ministry of Finance released the required funds.
In a statement on Monday, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) confirmed that payment of February salaries began the same day.
The OAGF attributed the delay to a technical hitch.
“The delay in the payment of the February 2026 salaries was due to a technical hitch, which has been tackled, and necessary measures have been put in place to prevent a recurrence,” the statement said.
The office further disclosed that it had received approval and concluded the process for the payment of one month’s wage award arrears out of the three months outstanding.
Earlier on Monday, Mr. Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, announced plans to clear the arrears following a meeting between the Federal Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
In a post on X shared by the Ministry of Labour, Mr. Edun said the May 2024 wage award arrears would be paid alongside February salaries.
“The May 2024 wage award will be paid together with the February salary. The June 2024 arrears will be paid after the March salary, while the July 2024 arrears will be settled after the April salary,” he said.
The meeting was convened by Mr. Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, Minister of Labour and Employment, amid labour’s threat to picket the Ministry of Finance over the outstanding payments.
