Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has approved a new minimum wage of ₦80,000 for state employees, announced on Wednesday. According to a statement from the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Dotun Oyelade, the decision follows recommendations from a Technical Committee established by the state government, which obtained Makinde’s approval for the wage increase.

Oyelade noted, “The new salary scale will take effect after the committee, consisting of government and Labour officials, completes the necessary consequential adjustments.” He highlighted that Oyo State recently received recognition from the National Bureau of Statistics as the most worker-friendly state in Southern Nigeria, with a significant reduction in unemployment due to expanded hiring across sectors.

Since taking office in 2019, Makinde has ensured timely salary payments on the 25th of every month and implemented the previous ₦30,000 minimum wage at the start of his administration. Additionally, he has consistently paid pensions, gratuities, and a 13th-month bonus to workers and pensioners.

In response to the federal government’s fuel subsidy removal, Makinde has provided a welfare wage award of ₦25,000 for workers and ₦15,000 for pensioners since November 2023. The administration has also cleared pension backlogs dating from 2008 to 2015, increased gratuity payments, reinstated pensioners previously removed from payroll, and introduced an annual Christmas/New Year chicken bonus for all pensioners.