Nigeria Labour Congress General Secretary Emmanuel Ugboaja dies at 60

NLC President Joe Ajaero announced Ugboaja’s death to members of the Congress National Executive Council during a meeting in Enugu, reportedly reading a letter from the deceased’s family. Ugboaja, a veteran trade unionist and lawyer, served as NLC General Secretary since August 2019, succeeding Peter Ozo-Eson. In this role, he coordinated administrative and strategic operations, including relations with affiliate unions, industrial relations, negotiations with government and employers, policy implementation, and nationwide mobilization.

His tenure included significant confrontations between organized labor and governments over wages, workers’ welfare, and economic policies. He was involved in negotiations for the N30,000 national minimum wage in 2019 and signed an NLC directive in April 2026 urging workers in states that had not fully implemented the 2024 National Minimum Wage Act to participate in May Day rallies. Born on May 15, 1966, Ugboaja studied Law at the University of Calabar, graduating in 1987.

He practiced law privately for about four years before joining the trade union movement in 1993, becoming the first Nigerian lawyer to work full-time for a trade union. He rose to General Secretary of the National Union of Chemical, Footwear, Rubber, Leather and Non-Metallic Products Employees from 2000 to 2005, and later served as Coordinator, Ad