Employment contract
First determine coverage under the Labour Act worker definition, the common-law employment relationship and sector rules. Before work, lock the employer, role, site, start, term, pay and cycle, hours, leave, benefits, probation, notice, IP, data and safety; a worker covered by Labour Act section 7 should receive written employment particulars no later than three months after starting. Executives, professionals, outsourced staff or oral contracts are not “unprotected”; different sources and contract standards may apply.
Probation
The federal Labour Act does not set one universal probation period or automatic confirmation date for every private role. The contract should state duration, objectives, review, extension conditions, notice and benefits; minimum pay and applicable pension, employee-compensation, health-insurance, anti-forced-labour and safety duties continue. Probation is not an unpaid, undocumented, notice-free or discriminatory exit window.
Hours, rest & overtime
Labour Act section 13 leaves normal hours to mutual agreement, collective bargaining or an industrial wages board and addresses rest arrangements; Nigeria has no safe universal “40 hours and 1.5× overtime” formula for every role. Build the rule from contract, sector, collective instrument, shift, night, public-holiday and worksite facts and keep reliable time records. A managerial title, remote work or monthly salary does not automatically remove hours and rest disputes.
Minimum wage by region
The current national minimum wage is ₦70,000 per month, with a three-year review cycle under the 2024 amendment. Where applicable, use the higher valid statutory, sector wage-order, collective or contractual floor and separately test statutory exemptions, part-time/piece-rate treatment and worksite. ₦70,000 is not a market median, expatriate-quota salary, total employer cost or recommended offer for every role.
Salary & talent supply
Benchmark offers with dated NBS labour/earnings data, NDE channels and actual vacancy/candidate evidence by state/city, sector, role, seniority, fixed pay, allowances, bonus, hybrid terms and scarcity. The national minimum, one job-board average or a Lagos-only sample is not a national market rate; retain sample period, currency, gross/net definition, percentile, gaps and approval.
Payroll, payslip & payment
Before payroll, complete identity, bank, TIN/state-tax, PFA/RSA, NSITF, NHIA/state-scheme and foreign-permission data as applicable. Each payslip should separate base pay, allowances, bonus, overtime, absence, PAYE, employee pension and other lawful deductions and reconcile to payment and ledger. Pension is generally remitted to the employee RSA within seven working days after salary payment; an accountant, PFA, HMO or payroll vendor does not transfer employer responsibility.
PIT withholding & social insurance
For eligible employees the minimum pension contribution totals 18% of monthly emoluments (at least 10% employer and 8% employee); the mandatory CPS generally reaches private organisations with three or more employees, while under-three/self-employed cases use personal or micro-pension rules. The NSITF Employee Compensation Scheme is generally employer-funded at 1% of total payroll. ITF generally charges 1% of annual payroll where an employer has five or more staff, or fewer than five with at least ₦50m annual turnover, handled by 31 March. PAYE, NHIA/state health schemes, sector funds and reliefs remain separate—never collapse them into one fixed percentage.
Employer-cost calculator scope
The Nigeria calculator is scenario budgeting only. Model cash pay/allowances, employer pension, NSITF, ITF, health/state scheme, recruitment and immigration, equipment, safety, leave/holidays, bonus, termination, FX and PAYE withholding separately; preserve scenarios for 0–2, 3–4 and 5+ staff, turnover of at least ₦50m, expatriates and different states. Output is not payroll, a tax return, PCC, offer or legal opinion.
Annual leave
A worker covered by Labour Act section 18 generally receives at least six working days of paid annual holiday after 12 months’ continuous service; a person under 16, including an apprentice, receives at least 12. Lawful deferral is limited, while contract, collective, sector or policy terms can be better. Evidence scheduling, notice, pay, leave taken, deferral consent and exit treatment; six days is not a recommended commercial ceiling for every professional or executive.
Public holidays & overtime
Add only dates established by the Public Holidays Act and formal federal declarations to the national calendar, then check state/local, sector, religious, shift and collective arrangements. Confirm rest, work and compensation under the applicable law and contractual/collective standard; an ad-hoc government announcement, bank closure or media calendar does not automatically create one overtime multiplier for all private staff. Retain the declaration, roster, actual work, consent and compensation.
Family & medical leave
A female worker covered by Labour Act section 54 generally has 12 weeks’ maternity leave in total (up to six before expected confinement and at least six after), with a statutory baseline of at least half pay after six months’ continuous service and nursing breaks; contract, public-sector, state, sector or company terms may be better. There is no safe universal federal private-sector formula for paid paternity or long-term sickness leave, so test medical evidence, short sickness, occupational injury, accommodation, non-discrimination and job protection separately.
Statutory & market benefits
Minimum pay and applicable pension, employee compensation, health participation, leave/rest and safety are not freely relabelled benefits. The NHIA Act 2022 requires Nigerian residents to obtain health insurance and expressly includes public/private employers and employees with five staff or more; enrolment route, state scheme, HMO, rate, dependants and supplementary private cover require scheme/state checks. Meals, transport, housing, communications, medical top-ups and bonus may become enforceable and taxable when promised by contract, collective terms or settled practice.
Termination & disputes
First distinguish resignation, ordinary termination, misconduct dismissal, fixed-term expiry, redundancy, death and agreement. For a worker covered by Labour Act section 11, minimum notice is generally one day at up to three months’ service, one week above three months but under two years, two weeks at two to five years, and one month above five years; lawful pay in lieu may apply. Redundancy also triggers section 20 information, selection and negotiation steps. Complete pay/leave/pension/tax, assets/data, immigration and certificates case by case; the notice table is not permission for arbitrary dismissal.
Contractor classification
Employee/contractor status follows facts such as control, personal service, substitution, tools, business risk, pricing, integration, continuity and multiple clients. Outsourced, casual, consultant, invoice or fixed-term labels do not override reality; NSITF expressly describes casual and outsourced staff within employee-compensation coverage. Misclassification can create pay, pension, NSITF, PAYE, leave, injury, penalty and joint/substituted liabilities.
Foreign workers
Before an expatriate starts, match the approved Expatriate Quota position, sponsor, R2A/R3A or other visa class and valid e-CERPAC to the actual work, and maintain quota amendment/deletion plus localisation/succession controls. A Business Permit, NIPC/CAC registration, shareholder or director title does not create personal work rights; a business e-Visa or R11 TWP is not a routine long-term employment route. Check NIS/Interior effects before role, sponsor, duration or exit changes.
Recruiting channels
Use NDE, schools, professional bodies and role-relevant channels, measuring qualified rate, time-to-fill, offer acceptance, cost and 90/180-day retention. Advertising, screening, background, health, AI and interviews should use job necessity, notice, data minimisation and consistent standards; cross-state placement, employment agencies, expatriate agents, apprentice/youth schemes and sensitive data need separate permission checks. Do not claim a “best talent pool” or guaranteed outcome from unverified job-board advertising.
Retirement age
There is no one mandatory retirement age for every private-sector role. CPS/RSA retirement access, the age-50 threshold and unemployment exceptions follow current PenCom rules and scheme documents; pension eligibility does not automatically terminate employment. Review contractual retirement age, capability, age treatment, succession, notice, health and collective/sector rules separately—never configure “automatic dismissal at 50.”
Employment compliance calendar
At each hire verify contract coverage, status, minimum wage, state/sector rules, PFA/RSA, NSITF, health, foreign permission and safety; each payroll reconciles payslip, PAYE, employee/employer pension and payment. Close pension within seven working days after salary, handle applicable NSITF filings/contributions, complete annual ITF processing by 31 March, and use the PenCom e-Hub PCC flow effective 1 July 2026. Recheck headcount/turnover quarterly and update minimum pay, holidays, rates, immigration and policy annually; exits close settlement, immigration, assets and data. Give every control an owner, evidence, deadline and failure escalation.