This came as a response to a national cost-of-living crisis, as the price of food and electricity overtook the minimum wage, which is relatively low for the large African economy.

NLC leader Joe Ajaero expressed mixed feelings about the settlement, but remained optimistic about the new triennial review period.

[2] According to BBC News, the monthly cost of the average Nigerian family's rice consumption is greater even than the government's proposed raised minimum wage.

[3] After talks between unions and the government to raise the minimum wage collapsed, on Friday 31 May 2024, the NLC and TUC declared that an indefinite general strike would be held until their demands were met.

[4] On Monday 3 June, union workers in the electricity and airline industries stopped work, resulting in the complete shut down of the national grid and air travel throughout the country.

[1] Speaking to CNN, one doctor expressed worry that the Nigerian healthcare system was "on the verge of collapse", as hospitals were unable to function without electricity from the national grid.

[5] On Tuesday 4 June 2024, the NLC and TUC announced that they were suspending the general strike for a week, after the government signalled its willingness to raise the minimum wage higher than their previous proposal of ₦60,000.

[12] On 25 June 2024, minimum wage proposals were delayed while the federal government continued its consultation with state governors and employers' associations.

[18] An ultimatum to the federal government was also signed by the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU), which called for four months of withheld salaries to be paid within two weeks.

[27] Minister of Information Mohammed Idris Malagi clarified that the meeting had also included discussions of regular minimum wage reviews, to take place every 2 or 3 years.

[29][30][31] A bill to raise the minimum wage was sent to the National Assembly, with Bayo Onanuga reporting that it would be ready by Tuesday 23 July 2024.

[3] Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga himself accused the unions of "blackmail" and "sabotage", saying that "Labour is harming the Nigerian people they claim to be fighting for.

[7] Social media influencer Reno Omokri rejected the strikers' demands for higher wages, denounced NLC leader Joe Ajaero as an "economic saboteur" and accused him of trying "to please his master, Peter Obi.

"[34] Writing for This Day, columnist Onikepo Braithwaite denounced the sabotage actions taken during the strike as a form of "domestic terrorism", although she also wrote sympathetically about the need for a living wage and called for "both sides to be reasonable".