THE Federal Government has assured public servants that the outstanding wage award will be paid before the middle of August, while promotion arrears are also being processed as part of efforts to fulfil its commitments to workers.
News Point Nigeria reports that the assurance was given during a meeting between the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, and the leadership of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (JPSNC), Trade Side, led by its National President, Kabiru Minjibir.
The assurance was contained in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head of Information and Public Relations at the Federal Ministry of Finance, Efe Ovuakporie. According to the statement, the minister noted that the Federal Government had already commenced addressing many of the issues raised by the council even before receiving its formal communication.
He reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to resolving legitimate labour concerns through constructive engagement, stressing that the government remains committed to honouring all agreements reached with workers.
“When government makes commitments, it delivers. We are not in the habit of making promises that cannot be fulfilled. Where there are outstanding issues, we will give realistic timelines and ensure they are implemented,” the minister said.
The minister disclosed that the necessary approvals for the payment of the outstanding wage award were being finalised and expressed confidence that eligible public servants would begin receiving the payments before the middle of August.
He further assured the delegation that outstanding promotion arrears were receiving the required attention, with pending batches currently being processed in accordance with established procedures.
To fast-track the process, the minister directed relevant officials to review all documents submitted by the council, liaise with the appropriate Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), and expedite action on all outstanding matters requiring government intervention.
While acknowledging labour’s concerns over delays in implementing some agreements, he assured the delegation that the Federal Government would continue to strengthen trust through transparency, regular consultations and prompt action.
“Our objective is to build a system where issues are resolved proactively. We want workers to have confidence that once government gives its word, it will honour that commitment,” he added.
Earlier, the National President of the JPSNC, Kabiru Minjibir, commended the minister for granting the delegation an audience and appealed for the speedy resolution of outstanding labour issues, including the wage award, promotion arrears, salary relativity concerns affecting health workers, and other matters impacting public servants.
According to him, timely implementation of the Federal Government’s commitments would strengthen industrial harmony and boost workers’ confidence in the administration.
Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Raymond Omachi, reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment to working closely with organised labour to ensure approved workers’ entitlements are processed and released without avoidable delays.
The Permanent Secretary, Special Duties, Mohammed Danjuma, disclosed that Batch 7 promotion arrears, which were inadvertently omitted during an earlier payment exercise, are now being processed alongside Batch 9.
He added that the Federal Government is also working with relevant MDAs to resolve issues relating to the Peculiar Allowance and other outstanding labour matters.
Providing an update on the payment process, the Director of the Cash Management Department, Christiana Osho, said reconciliation of the outstanding wage award had been completed and that the release of funds was at its final stage.
She explained that eligible public servants would begin receiving the outstanding wage award immediately after the funds are released, while the processing of promotion arrears would continue in line with the approved schedule.
At the end of the meeting, both the Federal Government and the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council reaffirmed their commitment to sustained dialogue and collaboration aimed at ensuring the timely resolution of outstanding labour issues and maintaining industrial harmony across the federal public service.