Employers across the country have been urged to introduce additional wage packages and welfare incentives for workers as rising economic pressures continue to erode household purchasing power.

The Working People United (WoPU), a coalition of workers, professionals and artisans, made the call while commending the Delta State Government for approving a new salary structure for workers in tertiary institutions.

In a statement by its Coordinator-General, Williams Akporeha, the coalition said employers should not wait for Federal Government pronouncements on wage increases before improving workers’ welfare within their establishments.

WoPU argued that stronger compensation packages and workplace incentives were necessary to cushion the impact of economic pressures on Nigerian workers, while improving productivity and reducing social pressures.

The coalition also called on state governments and sectors benefiting from the Federal Government’s socio-economic reforms to devote part of their increased revenues to worker welfare and palliatives.

It said such measures would help spread the benefits of economic reforms, reduce poverty and strengthen the purchasing power of working people.

WoPU commended Governor Sheriff Oborevwori for approving a new salary structure for academic staff of Delta State’s four universities, effective from August 2026, with non-academic staff and workers in other tertiary institutions covered from September.

The coalition said the decision demonstrated the importance of linking improved public revenues to better worker welfare and urged other state governments, agencies, parastatals and private-sector employers to adopt similar measures.

It also welcomed the state government’s plans to expand infrastructure, including hostel construction across nine state-owned tertiary institutions, saying investment in workers and institutions would support productivity and human capital development.

According to WoPU, improved welfare packages could boost productivity, national development and social stability while easing economic pressures that could contribute to crime and other disruptive activities.

The coalition maintained that increased revenues at state and institutional levels should translate into tangible improvements in workers’ living and working conditions, stressing that investment in working people was essential to Nigeria’s economic stability and long-term growth.