The Federal Government has commenced payment of February 2026 salaries to treasury-funded workers and announced plans to clear the outstanding three months’ wage award arrears starting from March.

In a statement issued on Monday, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) confirmed that payment of February salaries had begun nationwide.

The office attributed the delay to a technical glitch in the payment process.

“The delay in the payment of the February 2026 salaries was caused by a technical hitch, which has now been resolved. Measures have also been put in place to prevent a recurrence,” the statement said.

The OAGF further disclosed that approval has been obtained and processing concluded for the payment of one month’s wage award arrears, out of the three months currently owed to workers.

The development follows rising tension between the Federal Government and organised labour in the federal public service. Last week, labour unions issued a February 27 ultimatum demanding the immediate release of funds to settle three months’ outstanding wage awards and other unpaid allowances across ministries, departments, and agencies.

The ultimatum was conveyed by the leadership of the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (Trade Union Side) in a letter to the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, warning that failure to meet the deadline would trigger decisive industrial action by the eight civil service unions.

The unions accused the government of deliberately withholding funds meant for workers, insisting that relevant payroll agencies were ready to process payments once funds were released by the Federal Ministry of Finance.

The move came hours after the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, announced a payment timeline for the arrears following a high-level meeting between the Federal Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

In a post on X on Monday via the Ministry of Labour, Edun said the arrears would be paid in phases.

“The May 2024 wage award arrears will be paid alongside the February salary.

The June 2024 arrears will be paid after the March salary, while the July 2024 arrears will be settled after the April salary,” he said.

The meeting was convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, amid labour’s threat to picket the Ministry of Finance over the prolonged delay in settling workers’ entitlements. (Guardian)