The Federal Government has moved to ease tensions with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) by meeting two of its major demands, just days after workers threatened to shut down the economy.

The concessions include:

Reversing the controversial 40% deduction from the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) into the national treasury.

Appointing Opeyemi Agbaje as chairman of the National Pension Commission (PenCom) board.

Although PenCom is yet to officially confirm Agbaje’s appointment, government documents indicate that the reversal of deductions has already taken effect.

In a letter to the NLC, NSITF Managing Director, Oluwaseun Faleye, explained that the deductions were introduced in December 2023 as part of a federal policy to automatically take 50% of internally generated revenue from government agencies. However, he clarified that workers’ contributions are not government revenue and therefore should not have been touched.

Faleye assured that both the Minister of Finance and the Director-General of the Budget Office have agreed that no further deductions will be made and some of the previously deducted funds have already been reversed.

Reacting, NLC Secretary Christopher Onyeka confirmed receipt of the letter but stressed that the union’s executive council will review it before taking a final decision on the proposed strike.

“The contributions to NSITF are meant to protect workers in case of injury, not to fund government spending. Protecting these funds is our duty,” Onyeka said.

The NLC had earlier given President Bola Ahmed Tinubu a seven-day ultimatum to meet its demands or face a nationwide shutdown.

With two key demands now met, all eyes are on the union’s leadership to decide whether the strike will still go ahead.