The Lagos State Government plans to require all contractors and organisations doing business with the state to comply with the Employees' Compensation Scheme (ECS). This directive, disclosed by the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), emerged during a courtesy visit by its management to the state's Ministry of Finance. NSITF's Director General, Dr. Kehinde Olufemi, stated that the move is expected to enhance worker protection and ensure institutional accountability in public and private sector engagements. Currently, the ECS mandates employers to contribute 1% of employees' annual gross earnings toward compensation for work-related injuries or death. The state government has not yet announced the implementation timeline but described the policy as a step toward formalising labour standards across state-funded projects.
Lagos is leveraging its spending power to force employers to pay into the workers' compensation fund, a shift that could benefit thousands of contract workers. Dr. Kehinde Olufemi's push through NSITF gains new traction with state backing, turning a frequently ignored rule into a procurement gatekeeper. For workers on state projects, this could mean real access to injury benefits where none existed before. But without public timelines or penalties, the policy risks being more symbolic than transformative.
