Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo has approved an additional N5,000 to the minimum wage of civil servants—just days after his predecessor, Godwin Obaseki, raised it to N70,000.
The announcement was made during the 2024 May Day celebration held at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, where Governor Okpebholo addressed cheering workers and labour leaders.
“Today, I am proud to announce that our administration has approved a new minimum wage of N75,000 per month for all Edo workers,” Okpebholo declared.
“It’s our way of saying thank you, Edo workers. We believe this makes a real difference, and we count on your dedication to a better Edo.”
The governor described the wage hike as part of broader efforts to uplift the standard of living and reaffirmed his commitment to prioritising workers’ welfare.
“Since taking office, my administration has prioritised workers’ welfare. One early action was converting over 1,000 casual workers, including cleaners, into permanent civil service employees,” he said.
Marking his first Workers’ Day in office, Okpebholo hailed the contributions of civil servants and emphasized the symbolic importance of May Day.
He announced additional steps taken to strengthen the public service, including new hires and regularisations.
“We also approved recruitment of 450 clinical and non-clinical hospital staff and regularised 126 contract workers at Edo State Specialist Hospital for stability and growth,” he added.
He further revealed that his administration had cleared outstanding salary arrears owed to Edo Polytechnic staff and sworn in delayed judicial appointments.
Okpebholo also announced plans to absorb over 3,000 casual teachers into full-time roles while noting that 500 teachers had already been recruited.
“We believe in building a workforce that is empowered, motivated, and fairly treated,” the governor stressed as he reaffirmed his pledge to ensure timely payment of salaries and pensions.
