Food and fuel prices have been soaring in Africa's biggest economy, increasing hardship.
Inflation is at its highest point in almost three decades - spurred by bold but unpopular reforms by President Bola Tinubu in his first year in office.
That includes ending a costly fuel subsidy and devaluing the local naira currency twice.
'"There is suffering in the land, there is suffering for the worker."
NLC President Joe Ajaero:
"Over 150 million Nigerians are living below poverty line, poverty, when you say, below it. Those are the people who can't get something to eat on daily basis."
On Friday (February 23), some people were killed and others injured when authorities ran out of food at a distribution center in Lagos, the Nigeria Customs Service said.
In a statement it said that a crowd had charged through barricades looking for bags of rice.
Vicky Essien was among the 5,000 people said to have turned up at the distribution center.
"We just want to pray for Nigeria because this queue is not what Nigerians wish for. It is not for us. Look at people dying. Two men there fainted... pouring water...women also. It is not what we supposed to suffer for."
Tinubu has defended his economic reforms saying they were needed to boost growth and investment.
This week, the government approved the immediate resumption of cash transfers to 12 million vulnerable households.
However, labor unions want Tinubu's administration to go further.
On Tuesday, the central bank hiked interest rates by four percentage points - a move its governor said was needed to arrest inflation.
