FG denies sending 40% peculiar allowance approval to JNPSNC, labour

The Federal Government has clarified reports on the approval of a 40 per cent peculiar allowance for federal civil servants across Nigeria.

The Director of Press and Public Relations, Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Eno Olotu, in a statement on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, said the HCSF neither approved nor conveyed the approval of the allowance to the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC) or any labour union.

Olotu stated that the statutory responsibility for issuing and communicating such circulars was with the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC).

Olotu explained that the circular being circulated in the media reports was issued by the NSIWC on April 23, 2026.

She said the meeting convened by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation on Tuesday was strictly interventionist and conciliatory.

She stated: “It was strictly an interventionist and conciliatory engagement aimed at facilitating dialogue between the organised labour under its jurisdiction and the NSIWC.

“The meeting was to promote mutual understanding, and avert any breakdown in labour relations within the Federal Civil Service.

“The office of the HCSF recalled that at a press briefing on April 24, 2026, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, announced the Federal Government’s approval of a welfare package for civil servants and other entitlements.

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“Walson-Jack listed the approvals to include full Duty Tour Allowance for approved trainings in selected institutions, upward review of peculiar allowance across grade levels on the Consolidated Public Service Salary Structure (CONPSS) and the Consolidated Research and Allied Institutions Salary Structure (CONRAISS).”

Other approvals, Olotu said, include increase in estacode, book allowance, and other entitlements.

She also noted that the federal government approved a N10 billion housing loan scheme aimed at expanding access to affordable home ownership opportunities for civil servants.

Olotu stressed that the office is committed to fostering peaceful labour relations and sustaining collaborative engagement with stakeholders toward maintaining industrial harmony in the Federal Civil Service.