Akor Sylvester, Abuja
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has urged labour reporters to play vital role in the campaign for workers’ welfare by holding political leaders accountable for their promises ahead of the 2027 general elections.
President of NLC, Joe Ajaero who gave the charge at the third annual Labour Conference organised by the Labour Correspondents’ Association of Nigeria (LACAN) in Abuja on Thursday with the theme: “The Future of Work: Minimum Wage, Economic Reforms and 2027 General Election.” also called on the media to support the demand for a living wage, insisting that the next national minimum wage must protect workers from economic hardship rather than merely meeting the minimum requirements for survival.
Represented at the event by NLC’s Assistant General Secretary Chris Onyeka, Ajaero said labour reporters must scrutinise economic reforms, challenge policies that undermine workers’ welfare and ensure that politicians clearly articulate their plans for Nigerian workers ahead of the 2027 polls.
The labour leader described the future of work as a political question, warning that growing casualisation, poor wages, job insecurity and the expansion of the informal and digital economies were threatening workers’ rights and collective bargaining.
According to him, economic reforms that suppress wages in the name of stabilisation are detrimental to workers and cannot deliver sustainable economic progress.
He urged LACAN to work with the labour movement to ensure that the forthcoming minimum wage negotiations produce a living wage and that economic policies do not impose disproportionate hardship on workers and vulnerable Nigerians.
The Congress also cautioned labour correspondents against reports capable of creating division within the labour movement, particularly over resolutions reached between Organised Labour and the Federal Government, urging journalists to provide clarity on industrial relations issues and resist attempts to use the media to destabilise the labour movement.
Ajaero further called on LACAN to strengthen its relationship with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), an affiliate of the NLC, noting that press freedom and the protection of journalists were closely linked to the broader struggle for workers’ rights.
While reaffirming support for the association, Ajaero urged labour reporters to adopt more creative and people-centred approaches to their coverage, with particular attention to casualised workers, low-income earners and other vulnerable groups.
